Season 10: Episode 2: The Sight
by Jenthewarrior
Summary: Mulder and Scully face off against an alien parasite who feeds on the psychic abilities of others, namely the local children.
1. Chapter 1

**EPISODE 2: THE SIGHT**

 **Chapter 1.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

 **August 3, 2010.**

He woke in the middle of the night to the sound of a child crying. He stood in her doorway for a little while, waiting to see if she would calm herself and fall back to sleep, but it was slowly turning into a wail. He had to intervene before the furniture started flying around. He sat on the edge of her mattress, running his hand along her back, only partly awake himself. Half of his brain was still back on the beach, watching Scully try to befriend a wayward sea turtle with a bottle of Corona tilting out into the sand. When his little charge finally awakened, she pulled the sheets over her face to wipe the tears away, and turned to him, eyes as glassy as ever, with that trembling lip. She sat up and wrapped both arms around his neck, doing everything she could to get closer to him. She was shaking despite the warm, humid air flowing in from the open window.

He did what he could to comfort her, but his words were the same every night. He was uncertain of his impact on the situation, and yet he still came. He still tried. "It was just a dream," he assured her, stroking down her wild hair. "Was it the same one again?"

Perhaps in a sick symmetry with his own recurring nightmares, his tiny friend had the same dream every night, and though she expected it, and loathed it, and spoke about it in detail when the sun was up, it always chilled her to the core. It produced this reaction every time, and every time he was here with her to try and calm the storm. He knew the story well by now.

She saw an abandoned building, and within it, she was running for her life. She was pursued by an figure she always described as small, but sinister, and there was no way to shake it. She entered a room that was painted bright yellow, and then she was caught, held up, and thrown over the railing to her death. She woke up when she hit the ground. She drew pictures of it and posted them on her walls. She wrote stories about it and slipped them under his door. She told the dog about it over their afternoon tea. She lived and breathed this narrative, trapped beneath the weight of it, much like Mulder had recounted and suffered the memory of his sister for years after the fact.

Only her story had not happened yet.

Iden was psychic. She had successfully predicted an attack on one of the local girl months ago, and that prediction allowed Scully to save a life. If she saw something, it was very likely to happen.

She nodded to his question, whimpering.

He urged her to lay back down, tucking the covers up to her chest. "Look around. We're in your room. Nobody is going to hurt you here."

"But…" Iden murmured, her eyes fogging with tears.

"No buts," Mulder said, glancing at the window. "If anyone tries to hurt you, they won't get far, okay? Frankie is right here with you, and Scully and I are in the other room."

She stared at him, looking like she wanted to object again.

"Why don't you think about what we're going to do tomorrow? Do you remember?"

She smiled slightly. "Yeah."

"Think about that, okay?" He brushed her hair away from her face, giving her the best reassuring smile he could. He went for a softer tone. "And go back to sleep."

Mulder dragged his feet all the way back to his own bedroom. He collapsed on his side of the bed, making his partner stir. She grumbled at him and slid further away. Scully was not happy with him at the moment – she thought his excursions with Iden were too dangerous, and that he was taking unnecessary risks left and right. She was convinced he was going to get them both killed, or get Iden taken away from them. Their custody of her was flimsy at best.

But her anger didn't bother him. She still kissed him goodbye in the mornings and curled up with him at night. If those things stopped, he would have cause for concern.

He was barely back in his dreams, just walking along the edge of a sunny beach, when he heard the front door open. It was a distinct sound, amplified by the blinds banging against the wood, and the old hinges creaking like they hadn't been used in years. His skin prickled with a sudden rush of adrenaline at the prospect of someone invading his home.

He got out of bed, stepping into the hall to stare at the front yard. He was right. His front door was wide open, and he could see nothing in the yard. Frankie had just started in that direction, growling.

His first thought was that the ghosts from the caves had returned. Since his excursion into the troubling story of two dead siblings from centuries ago, Mulder had had a hard time forgetting his encounter with them. It still weighed heavily on his mind. He still wondered where they might be. Beyond that, he thought the Gunmen, who had made a habit out of trying to convince him that they were not his imagination, were just messing with him again. But in the back of his mind, in the most basic, primitive part of his brain, he imagined a foreign entity was about to attack, and that the first thing he should do is defend his home, and his girls.

He took his gun from his underwear drawer – a new hiding spot now that Iden was in the house – and crept along the hallway. He sighed when he looked into Iden's room. Her bed was empty. Once or twice a month she would go out to catch fireflies.

He tucked his gun into his pajama bottoms and went outside, stopping at the front steps. Iden was standing in the yard, staring up at the moon. She had a habit of looking up into the sky, just like he did, but when she did it there was always the possibility that she was having a vision. Whenever she was still for such a long time, he wondered what she might be seeing. It could be something as harmless as a delay in the mail delivery the following morning – or something as consequential as a child falling into a river unsupervised.

Mulder went to join her, frowning at Frankie, who was sitting across the bottom step. She was awful at babysitting. "What are you doing out here?" he asked, trying to follow her eyes. It was impossible to tell which constellation she might be looking at.

"I just… I like the sky."

When he had taken his own custody forms to the courthouse the other day, the social worker who had worked with Iden since her mother's death had warned him about her issues. According to the state of Virginia, she was a problem child who often disobeyed, snuck out, and questioned authority. When they saw someone as intelligent and brave as this, they hastened to print out a label for her and stick it on her permanent file – their categorization only served to make him more determined to keep her safe. It made him more enchanted with her, to know that she was misunderstood, to know that they were kindred spirits in that respect.

"You know, Scully would kill you if she saw you out here all alone."

Iden looked over at him, starlight in her big brown eyes, and shrugged. She was the stark opposite of her older sister, Deloris, in every way that he could imagine. Where her sister had white skin, blue eyes, and scraggly blonde hair, Iden had pale brown skin, brown eyes, and curly black hair. Iden was smaller, and prettier, and gentler in every way.

He wished he could have met her father, or her mother, to figure out why the siblings were so different, and so vastly separated in age. Deloris had once told him that her mother had had her when she was only fourteen, and thirty years passed before she woefully discovered that she was expecting again. Iden was never meant to happen, and she was almost put up for adoption, but something about the little girl had caught her mother's eye.

Iden was looking at the stars again, captivated by them, but her mind was elsewhere. She took his hand and leaned into his side. "I wish I couldn't dream."

He knew that feeling very well. Since his trip into the caves, he had experienced vivid nightmares about the cabin, the meadow, and the forest from his visions. Scully had told him it was a form of PTSD, a violent recalling of the events of his abduction, stretched to fit whatever weird canvas his mind came up with, but he thought it was something else. It was his very own haunting, a sort of punishment for some perceived wrong he had committed.

But Iden was just a kid. Hearing her sadness struck a chord in him.

He stepped behind her, wrapping his arms over her shoulders. He turned her toward the big dipper, which took up a big portion of the skyline, and pointed it out for her. "Check that out. We're so far out that the constellations actually look like constellations."

"What do you mean?"

"In the city you can't tell what they are," he said.

She started gazing around, thoughtful. "Do you think aliens are looking back at us?"

He smiled. "No."

"But I thought aliens were real. You said-"

"They are real," he cut in. "But they're not looking back at us. They live pretty far away. Our galaxy – the one that holds our solar system – is just one of millions, of billions of galaxies, in a possibly infinite number of universes. Other galaxies have other solar systems and other places that are kind of like Earth. None of them are particularly close."

"But you said aliens were on Earth already."

"Some are, but I imagine there are millions of species that have never given Earth a second thought. The ones that come here usually have ulterior motives."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean they want to hurt us." He crouched down, lining up her head with the brightest light in the sky. He pointed to it, making sure she was looking at the same one. "Do you see that?"

"The north star?"

"Yeah. When I lost my sister, I had dreams about that star, kind of like your nightmares. I saw it as a comet coming down to Earth. I thought it would land on my house, and every night I woke up and went outside to watch it, to make sure it stayed where it was."

"You were a weird kid."

He smiled, wrapping her in a bear hug. "Yeah? Well you _are_ a weird kid. Get back to bed."

"I don't want to. Tell me more about the aliens."

"Tomorrow, on our expedition. But that's only if you sleep through the night." He marched her up the stairs. "Sleep deprivation makes you more prone to illness, and your illness makes Scully more prone to make me sleep on the couch, so it's time for all the little girls in the house to lay down."

"But I'm the only little girl in the house!"

"I was including Frankie."

Iden sat up on her bed, patting the comforter. "Come on, Frankenstein. Come on!"

Frankie whimpered and leapt up to the bed, curling up next to the wall. Instead of sleeping at the foot of it like a normal dog, she shared the pillow with Iden.

"I want you to go to sleep this time," Mulder said, pulling the covers up to her chin.

He went for the door, but her voice stopped him. "Fox?"

He turned, frowning. "Yeah?"

She rubbed her eyes, yawning. "Do all aliens want to hurt us?"

"No. Some of them just want to live in peace, like we do." He cracked her door. "Get some sleep. We have a long day tomorrow."


	2. Chapter 2

**Responsible.**

 **August 4, 2010.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

Mulder took a deep breath, enjoying the way the riverbank smelled in the summer. It was like the sun was baking the mud, and instead of the smell of chocolate chips dissolving onto aluminum foil, it was a medley of minerals. He could almost taste it. He was in his favorite place, walking along a sandbar in the middle of the slow moving river that passed behind his house. His toes sank in, the water was warm, and songbirds were fluttering all over the place, keeping track of each other with little chirps and whistles. It was only a few hundred feet from the house, and yet it was its own little paradise, hidden away from everything by dozens of trees and thick underbrush.

But it was not a secret place, as he would have liked it to be. His lover came to crash the party after he had spent an hour clearing debris from the water. She came down the steep bank, trying to appear mad while simultaneously focusing on not tripping. When she hit the bottom she put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"Are you insane?"

He shrugged. "Depends who you ask."

"How could you tell a nine year old girl that aliens want to hurt her?"

He winced. Perhaps he should have elaborated a little more. He had been a little too focused on getting back to his own bed last night. "She was asking me about them, and I just wanted to make it clear that not all extraterrestrial life is benign."

"So you told her little green men wanted to hurt her?"

"Gray."

"I might actually shoot you, Mulder. Don't start with me."

"I didn't say they wanted to hurt her, specifically. Just people. Maybe."

She balked, at a loss for words for a moment. "How could you think that was okay?"

"She wanted information, so I gave it to her. I'm not a fan of keeping secrets, Scully. I've been lied to enough in my life to know that it does more harm than good."

"She is nine years old. She should be thinking about starting the fourth grade, not aliens!"

"Exactly, she's nine." He turned to watch her, unintimidated by her fuming. "Look, Iden is a smart kid. She's definitely smarter than I was when I was nine. And she's psychic! She needs to know that she's not the only thing that stands out in the world."

"She just wants to be normal."

"But she never will be!"

Scully scowled. She always locked up when he raised his voice like that. She took a hard breath through her nose. "She can try. Just keep your theories to yourself."

"I can't do that. Do you wanna know why?"

She was already trying to climb the embankment.

He stepped around, coming at her from the side. "Do you wanna know why, Scully? Because she doesn't have to pretend with us. Deloris left her here because of what she is. Social workers cringe at the sight of her name. Kids pick on her at school because she talks about her dreams. She shouldn't have to hide who she is – she shouldn't have to hide the things that make her special."

Scully stopped climbing. She turned to him, still frowning. Her voice was softer now. "I wish she didn't, but she does. People don't understand. I barely understand."

"People will come around."

"And then what?" Scully asked. "Do you want the government to come for her? Do you want what happened to Gibson to happen to her? Because that's how this will go. They won't let her live peacefully. They won't let her powers be the norm!"

"We disbanded those people," he reminded her.

"Right. But there's always something, isn't there? You said it yourself. You said that man's nature is secretive, and his secrets give him power, and his power gives him purpose."

"I'm a closet poet."

"I'm being serious, Mulder."

"I know." He stepped a little closer, lowering his voice. "I see what you're saying. We let this get way off topic, though. If the question is whether or not I should be teaching Iden what I know about extraterrestrials, then the answer is… I want you to be comfortable with it."

She stared at him, unsure.

He kissed her forehead. "Scully, when we sign those papers, she'll be our child. Ours, together. You're just as much a part of this as I am. So I won't overstep again."

"That is… really mature of you, Mulder."

Just then, he heard the front door slamming open, and the girl in question bounded across the yard. She came quickly down the embankment, making Scully look bad with her superior balance, and dug her bare feet into the sand. She looked expectantly at Mulder, and he got a dark look from Scully. She knew something was about to happen.

He went to the little black package on the shore, pulling the cord and flipping it outward. Like magic, a full-sized raft popped to life. Scully cocked an eyebrow.

"Now, before you object," Mulder said, pulling it to the shore and tossing the kid in. He tossed the dog in behind her. "Just consider this very carefully." He stepped in, too, grabbing his walking stick from the sand and pushing them into the middle of the river.

"Consider what?" she asked, smiling partly with irritation, and partly with affection.

He waited until he was a few more feet away, and then he stood up, did his best Tarzan impression, and held his stick above his head. "I regret nothing!"

She was laughing as the river curved and hid her with brush.

Iden took her place on the side of the raft, her long legs dragging in the water. She was looking back, to where Scully had disappeared. "Were you guys fighting?"

Mulder glanced up, wondering if this supposed to be a truthful moment, or a mature moment. He went for the former. "Sort of."

"Why?"

"Because… we're different people, and sometimes people who are different fight about things."

"Are you going to break up?"

"No." His answer came immediately, and he marveled at his own confidence. "We've been best friends for a long, long time. I don't think I could survive without her."

"We would starve."

He nodded. "That is completely true."

She was quiet for a while. The river pulled them down their usual path, past the sandbars and the shores full of local families. He beached them for a quick pit stop to let Frankie stretch her legs – and try to herd the toddlers on the shore – and then they set off again, taking the right path around the little island.

"I hope we don't pop again," Iden commented as the sound of the rapids came through the distance. She retreated to his side, looking eager. "Oh, look, there they are!"

"Brace yourself. This is gonna get bumpy."

"Hey, you stole that from a movie!"

"Prove it." He secured his stick in the bottom of the raft, grabbed the dog, and held onto one of the side ropes, his other arm wrapped around the kid. She was practically bouncing out of her seat. "Thar she blows! Land ho! Dead men tell no tales!"

"You're crazy!" she shouted.

Within moments, they started to speed up, the current rushing beneath their vessel. The rocks came up swiftly, sending them swerving in different directions, avoiding massive boulders that created strange wave patterns. As soon as the fun began, the water had already calmed into a faster, rougher pace, but comparably tame. It was child's play in a raft.

Iden grinned at him. "We're alive!"

He made a radio sound, putting his fist to his mouth. "Uh, if you look to your right, you can see the shores of honey and gold. If you look to your left, you can see a lot of thorns, which we will not be experiencing. If you look directly down, you can see the dog vomiting."

"Ew!"

"She gets seasick, give her a break."

When the river slowed and widened out, to the point that they were almost sitting still, Mulder tossed the dog out of the raft and jumped out with her. Frankie swam to the nearest shore, shaking the water out of her fur and bounding around in the woods. Iden leaned over the edge, looking into the dark water, uncertain.

"Are there sharks in rivers?"

"What are they teaching you in science class?"

She smirked. "Well, you said weird stuff happens all the time."

"To my knowledge, there are sharks in _some_ rivers, but not these rivers."

She twisted around, sliding feet-first into the water.

"But there might be alligators."

She tried to scramble out again, squealing.

He grabbed her, laughing. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding." He waited until she gave him a funny look, and then he rubbed his chin. "Or am I?"

"Fox!"

"Alligators don't live this far north. I promise." He pushed off of the raft, going underwater for a moment. When he came up, Iden was trying to climb back in again. "What are you so afraid of?"

She grunted, unable to lift herself.

He swam over and shoved her up, leaning over the side as she gathered herself in the raft. "Iden, I didn't mean to scare you. There's nothing to be afraid of in this water."

She swallowed. "It's not that. I just had a bad feeling."

If a normal child had said that to him, he would have brushed it off. Kids were sensitive to the dangers of the world around them, always vigilant for the boogieman and the monsters that lurked in dark corners – but this kid was not normal. She saw visions of the future. It was her prediction that had saved the life of Katie Whitehead months ago. Her powers were evident in all that she did, and he had total faith in her abilities.

So when she gave him that uncertain look, his heart sank. "A bad feeling about the water?"

"Yeah I saw… I saw something coming toward us."

He clambered over the edge of the raft, flopping into the middle. When he saw the amusement on her face, he smirked. "Okay, okay, you win. Very cute."

"I try," she responded, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

He scrambled toward her, grabbing her and flinging her out of the raft. She surfaced, hair pressed down all over her face, and scowled at him. He laughed. "Sorry, thought I saw a bug."

He grounded the raft and they spent the better part of the afternoon swimming. Iden continued to show off her bravery – despite hesitating to get in in the first place – by diving down into the water after every fish she saw. He warned her away from the crevices created by some broken boulders on the shore, weary of snakes, but when they saw a turtle enter one of them they wasted hours trying to fish it out. It took a water moccasin swimming toward them to finally force them to leave the water. Frankie was furious with the reptile, so Iden had to hold her to keep her from going after it. Mulder slung the raft over his shoulders and carried it up to the bike path that ran along the river, turning westward to head back home. Iden followed, only setting the dog down when she finally stopped squirming and growling. She was more interested in keeping up with her humans than getting vengeance on the snake now.

Wayfield was nestled on the side of a mountain, so most of their walk was uphill. Riding the raft down the river was the easy part. It was a hard hike, but it was made easier by the beautiful scenery and the abundant wildlife. He never marched for more than five minutes before Iden got distracted by a butterfly or a squirrel and sidetracked them through the woods.

Eventually their bike path led to a lonely, thinly paved highway without dividing lines. It wound away from the forest for a while, passing through farm country and giving them a brilliant view of the wheat fields, cattle pastures, and faded red barns that dotted this part of the state – and everything was slanted downward from here, built upon another massive slope of the mountain, so they got a postcard view that was completely uninterrupted.

From there, the highway went on northward to connect with another, which soon merged into the freeway that led into West Virginia. He took them in the opposite direction, down another road that went into the forest. It passed by a historic cemetery, and Mulder always stopped to read the names of the people who had perished there hundreds of years ago. In those kinds of places, Iden always took on a respectful silence, finally putting a cap on her endless monologue. She had an unusual reverence for the dead, for such a young person.

His dirt road merged with another and led into town, where they came upon the beaches again. Iden forced him to stop for ice cream, and he had to grin shamefully as he handed over soaked bills. It never occurred to him to take his wallet out of his pocket before he jumped into the river. He found a shady spot by the trees and sat down for a while, baking in the heat, soaking up the humidity, and drip-drying while he watched the local kids play in the water.

Iden was watching them too. "Do you think they know about aliens?" She spoke nonchalantly, more focused on licking her ice cream before it dripped than what she was saying.

He had so much to tell her, but he recalled his argument with Scully, and he only shrugged.

"What if Deloris comes back?"

Mulder turned his head, resting his face against the tree. He had been considering that question since coming home from the caves. Scully was adamant that they were better suited than Deloris to take care of Iden, and he honestly enjoyed having her around, but would she choose to go back to her sister if Deloris showed up in their driveway one afternoon? It haunted him, to think that his little friend could be taken from him in such a manner, and it might be perfectly legal. Iden was part of his family now, and losing her would be devastating.

He kept his fears to himself, and he forced his tone to remain even. No matter how he felt about it, the decision was not his. Iden was old enough to know what she wanted.

"What do you mean?"

She shrugged. "What if she comes back and wants me to live with her?"

Mulder took a casual bite of his ice cream. "Do you want to live with her?"

"No."

His interest spiked. "Why not?"

"I love her, but… I don't know." Iden sighed, pulling her knees up to her chest. She leaned over them, watching the other families on the beach. "I don't know how to say it. Now that I'm not living with her anymore it just… it doesn't feel like I should go back. I have my own bed now, and you guys make me feel better when I have nightmares."

Mulder hummed his agreement.

"Can I ask you something?"

He bit into his ice cream cone. "Anything. Anytime. Remember?"

She smiled a little. "If I was going to die, you would save me, right?"

He stared at her, gauging the seriousness of her words. She was really asking him this question. She seemed anxious about his answer, too, so he responded just as sincerely as she asked.

"Yes, I would save you."

"Good."

Mulder and his tiny companion made it home as the sun was setting. He had stopped for a bit in town, carrying his raft on his shoulders while Iden picked out a new backpack for school. She was starting in a few weeks and she was nervous that her old, ragged one would get the wrong kind of attention. She was carrying it on her back, as proud as a little princess, while he dragged the raft through the yard. Frankie ran ahead, sounding the alarm for them.

Scully glanced into the window, and then came out onto the front porch, giving him an expression that made him wonder if they should have stayed out a little later.

"Go inside and take your shower, sweetheart," Scully said to Iden, coming down the front steps. She kept her eyes on Mulder the whole time, giving him that sort of panicked, sort of surprised expression he had grown used to during their partnership.

He set the raft against the house, taking a breath before he asked. "What did I do?"

"Deloris called. She said she was stopping by later tonight."

"She wants Iden back?"

Scully shrugged. Her eyes were starting to redden, but it was just as easily a product of her anger. He hated to think of how upset she would be if Iden was taken from them.

"What did she say?"

"She just said she's coming to talk to us – to you, specifically."

"That can't be good."

"It never is with her."

He went up the steps, sinking onto the front porch swing. It made an awful groaning sound as it swung. He meant to get new chains months ago. "Those documents were legal, though. I mean, she gave you custody of Iden. She can't just take it back."

"I'm not sure," Scully admitted. She sat in one of the rocking chairs. Her voice was defeated. "She obtained them without going through the proper channels. The judge could void them."

"He would be throwing his career away."

"Deloris hasn't called you at all?"

He shook his head, sensing suspicion in her. "I'm not lying to you, Scully. I haven't had any contact with her since before I went to Kentucky. She brought me the scarf, remember?"

"I just wish I knew what she wanted."

"She probably saw some bullshit omen in her tea." He rolled off of the swing, pressing a firm kiss to her forehead. He came down to eye level, doing everything he could with his voice, with his hands, to reassure her. "Whatever it is, we can deal with it."

She blinked. "Just promise me you won't go running off."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Except to do the dishes, because last time I looked at the calendar, it was Wednesday."

"Last time I looked it was Tuesday."

"I think you should look again."

"I've been carrying that raft for hours. My arms are killing me."

"I didn't make you take that stupid raft down the river."

He groaned, but relented, dragging his feet through the house like an irritated teenager. He was going to go to his room to change out of his damp clothes, but he heard something peculiar coming from the bathroom. He stopped to listen, ear to the door.

Someone was crying.

He tapped on it. "Iden? Are you okay?"

There was no response.

"Iden? Talk to me. Are you hurt?"

When over a minute had passed, he pushed the door open cautiously. He found her sitting naked in the back of the tub, her little legs curled up to her chest, her face buried in her knees, sobbing softly, and suspended above her were hundreds of perfectly round water droplets. He gawked at the hovering spheres, an immediate sense of wonder overwhelming him.

He stepped inside, running his hand through the drops. When they touched his skin they acted normally, but until then they were trapped right where they were.

"Iden?" He crouched, unable to stop glancing up at the water suspended above him. "Hey, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

She peeked at him. "I don't want to go."

"Go where?"

"You guys were talking about Deloris. She wants to take me back."

He was at a loss for words for a moment. He wasn't sure if this was something she had overheard, or something revealed to her through her abilities. He was able to solve the water problem, though. Whenever she experienced intense emotions, these kinds of things happened. Weeks ago she had sent everything in her room flying away from her in the midst of a nightmare.

"Listen," he said, his voice falling several levels. "You don't have to go anywhere you don't want to go. I won't let her take you back. This is your home now, okay?"

She nodded, her lip quivering.

"When she gets here, you can come out and say hi if you want, but you don't have to. I won't let her come in if you don't want her to. Deal?"

She set her jaw. "Deal."

Just then, the water gave way, coming down on both of them. She looked surprised for a moment, but then she started giggling. He withdrew, chuckling, and grabbed a hand towel on his way out. Scully was in the hallway, apparently listening to their conversation.

"What brought that on?" she wondered.

"She must have heard us talking," he said, running the towel over his head. He pulled the bathroom door shut. "Did you see the water?"

"The water that's all over your face?"

"No, the water that was suspended above the shower. It was just sitting there in the air, perfectly still, hundreds of little droplets. I think her emotions triggered her powers again."

She twisted her lips. "I didn't see that."

"It happened, trust me."

She followed him into the bedroom. "What are we supposed to do about that, Mulder?"

He yanked his shirt off. "About what?"

"Her powers."

"Nothing. She hasn't hurt anyone. Once she gets a better grasp of her emotions, the events will go away."

"You hope."

"Well I've never lived with a psychic kid before, Scully."

She smirked, but the expression faded rapidly. She sighed to herself, gazing out of their window. "If Deloris is in an agreeable mood, I'm going to try to get her to come to the courthouse with me to sign the official release of custody forms. She'll relinquish her guardianship."

"Do you think she'll bite?"

"I'm not sure. She sounded distraught on the phone. All indications point to this being a psychic call, like you said. But I doubt she has the abilities she claims she does."

"I guess we'll see. Maybe she'll pull a prophecy out of a hat. Or a scarf."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3.**

 **August 4, 2010.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

It was deep into the night, and way past Iden's bedtime, when a car finally rolled into their driveway. Mulder stirred from a nap on the couch and Scully popped up beside him, groaning. Frankie sounded the alarm and bounded through the doggie door. Iden appeared in her doorway, staring grimly at the adults, awaiting their reaction.

Mulder was the first up. He stretched out his back and motioned to Iden. "Stay in there for a sec. Let us find out what she wants first."

Mulder and Scully stepped onto the front porch, squinting into the bright headlights of an unfamiliar car. Mulder gave Scully a cautious look, and she returned it. He saw the same fear in her – it was a delicate situation, and that kid was special in more ways than normal parents could understand. Her happiness was of great consequence to both of them.

Deloris got out slowly, unusually tame as the lights of her car went off. Mulder reached back and popped on the porch light, watching her every measured move as she approached. She seemed to have lost her theatricality. She had a solemn expression, almost like she was drugged.

"I… I need to see Iden."

Mulder judged the doubtful look on Scully's face and decided to respond first. "Explain yourself first. Tell me why you left."

" _Iden_ ," Deloris said simply, swallowing hard. She walked past them, sitting in his rocking chair. She had her hand on her chin, a world apart from everything around her. "I need to see her."

Mulder leaned against the pillar, forcing himself to be patient. He had to forget for the moment that this woman had slapped Iden, and then abandoned her on his doorstep months ago. He had to forget that the kid was afraid of her, that Iden was terrified that she was going to have to leave her new home so soon. He had to look past it to think clinically, to recall the investigative side of himself and figure out why this had happened, and how it could be resolved.

"Why did you abandon her?" Mulder prompted.

Deloris looked up like she was noticing him for the first time. Her voice had all of the seriousness of a few months before, but none of the vigor. She sounded tired, like she had aged years since her disappearance in May. "She saw me die, finally."

"Elaborate," Scully said dryly.

Deloris looked up, sensing the hostility, and then looked at the ground. "That is as elaborate as I can be. I need to see her."

"This is as close as you're getting," Scully stated.

"Is she afraid of me?"

Mulder crossed his arms, wondering if the sadness in the woman's eyes was real. "No. She's happy here. She wants to stay with us."

"I can take her back now. It's time."

"Why don't we go back to why you left her in the first place," Scully snapped. She was beginning to sound vicious. Mulder winced a little at her tone.

Deloris sighed. "She must have told you."

"You had 'visions' of my death every day," Mulder said, experiencing his own vicious streak. "I never slapped you, even though I should have – even though I wanted to. Why punish Iden for imitating you?"

"Iden should have kept it to herself. She knew what she was doing."

"That's ridiculous," Scully growled.

"I am telling you what you want to know," Deloris defended.

"She is, Scully," Mulder intervened, glancing at his partner. She was seething, her scowl never leaving Deloris. "Hey," he waved his hand, gathering her attention. "She's answered our questions."

"She's full of it, Mulder," Scully objected.

"Just let me see her, please. I just want to talk to her. I just want to protect her."

"No. I know how to protect her." Scully went to the door, looking between them, and then setting her cold eyes on Deloris. "By keeping her away from you."

She went inside, slamming the door behind her. Mulder flinched, but remained where he was. Deloris was still hanging her head. He was fascinated by her behavior, from a psychologist's viewpoint. It was like her personality had been altered. Everything that she was – the insistent, hilarious, and quirky psychic – had morphed and darkened in her time away. He wondered what kind of cataclysmic event could bring about such a change.

Keeping his eyes on her, and his mind on protecting the little girl inside, Mulder crouched down against the pillar, letting his voice trail from aggressive to curious.

"Iden told me about that night. You threw her out of your home."

Deloris glanced up, appearing ashamed. "She saw my death – apparently it is quite close now."

"I'm not convinced that you had to do what you did."

"Maybe I didn't. I was afraid for her, and for myself."

"You hit her."

"I regret everything I did that night."

His empathy was much stronger than his need for vengeance. His anger melted away in the face of her devastation. What in the world could have happened, to have hurt her so much? Was she living in her own little tragedy, playing out alongside that of her sister?

"What happened to you?" he asked, surprised by his own tone. He sounded just like he did when he spoke to Iden. He was unsure of it, but he couldn't help it.

She looked into his eyes suddenly, frowning, tilting her head. She seemed confused, and surprised, and enthralled by that question. It was a stunning look into her mind. It was so much deeper than he had imagined all those days that she dragged Iden to his house and told him that he was doomed to die in some horrific accident. Her soul was radiating out of her expression.

She stumbled for words. "You're so… kind, Fox."

He saw her regret, her repentance, very clearly now. His encounter with the ghosts in Kentucky had left him particularly sensitive to the pain of others. He could read her, like he read the brother who had slain his own sister. It was a similar kind of grief.

He stood up, glancing at the front door, where he knew Scully would be listening. "I'm not giving you the opportunity to take back what you did," he said. "But I think you should be allowed to atone. Iden is staying with us, but I'll ask her if she wants to talk to you."

Deloris popped out of her seat, suddenly anxious. "I can see her?"

"Let me talk to her," Mulder said, holding up one hand.

When he came into the hallway, he found Scully standing there waiting for him. She was guarding the hall, not allowing him access to Iden's room.

"I don't want her to talk to Iden."

"I thought you wanted Deloris to be agreeable, so she would sign over custody," Mulder said.

Scully shook her head. "No. She is a little girl. She should have no part in this woman's insanity. Deloris needs professional help, Mulder."

"You don't believe in psychic powers all of the sudden?"

Scully advanced on him, lowering her voice. "I believe in psychics, but not her. She is showing the characteristics of a severe mental illness. She believes that she can divine answers from tea leaves. She left with one personality, and returned with another. She doesn't even sound the same."

"She deserves a chance to apologize," he argued.

She locked her jaw. He could feel her irritation with him growing. "Fine. But you stay with her. Deloris isn't taking her anywhere."

"You're not coming?"

"I might shoot her." Scully turned, disappearing into the bedroom. She slammed the door like a dramatic teenager and he rolled his eyes.

Iden emerged from her room. She took his hand and leaned into his side, practically hidden under his arm. Having her close to him was a strange source of contentment. He wanted to protect her, to guard her, to bring a smile to her sad face. He had grown so attached over the last three months – she had been out of school and he only occasionally wrote up profiles for the FBI, so when Scully was at work they had hours and hours of free time. She was his river buddy, the one who followed him through the woods on ten hour walks, the one who asked him a thousand questions about life, about the world, about her abilities. She was his friend, even though he never imagined himself getting close to a child again after losing William. Iden was the exception, the one shot in the darkness, the little thread that tied Mulder and Scully to the ground.

She seemed so small now, in the half-light, peeking up at him like she was afraid, and yet there was a warm strength about her. She was truly something else.

"Are you sure you want to see her?" he asked the kid.

She nodded, her frown so deep that her bottom lip poked out. "Just don't let me go, okay?"

He walked her outside, pulling the front door shut behind him. Frankie whimpered and went to the window to watch them. Deloris was standing against the pillar now, and when she saw them come out, she gave her sister the same sad look she had arrived with.

Deloris said nothing, only stepped closer and held her hand out. Mulder looked curiously at the little girl stuck to his hip as she raised her own hand. She was shaking. She put her fingers lightly on top of Deloris', a determined light in her eyes. It stayed that way for several minutes, until Mulder started to question the legitimacy of what they were doing.

And then Iden drew away, gasping fearfully. He reacted, pushing her behind him to cut off the other woman's view of her. Deloris still had her hand out, frowning at nothing.

"Did she hurt you?" Mulder asked, glancing back at Iden. He looked at Deloris, baffled by the weird look she was giving him. "Did you hurt her?"

Her eyes glistened with fresh tears and she lunged at him suddenly, trying to grab the kid. Mulder pushed her away with considerable effort, surprised by how sturdy she was. She came back almost immediately, like his push had not fazed her at all.

"Hey! Stay away from her!"

Deloris pulled in a startled breath, tears dropping down her cheeks, and screamed, "No! Release her! Iden! Give her to me! _Iden_!"

Mulder reached behind him, throwing the door open. "Go inside," he urged Iden, who stood, frozen with fear, while her sister had some sort of episode. Scully was already coming down the hallway. She grabbed the girl, stared at Mulder, surprised, and then stepped out with him.

Deloris kept going on, screaming the same things, repeating her accusations as she tried to get to the door. Mulder held her away from it, unsure of what else he could do. He had seen this kind of persistence and strength from drug addicts, but Deloris seemed too small to make him struggle like this. He was barely able to hold her at bay. She was flinging herself around like a wild animal.

"Calm down!" he shouted, recoiling when she slapped him. It stung more like he'd been hit with a frying pan. She tried to slip past to the door and he shoved her back another few feet. "Hey! Stay back! You need to back off!"

Deloris screamed again. "Give her to me! _Iden_!"

"I'm calling Hector," Scully warned. She was standing behind Mulder, guarding the door, with her phone to her ear. "I'm calling the _police_ , Deloris. You need to calm down!"

Deloris wiggled around his arms and grabbed his shirt, tearing at it like she was preparing to tunnel through him. "Give her back to me! Give her to me!"

Scully looked at Mulder, worry flashing in her eyes. She tried to get Deloris to move away from him, away from the house, but the psychic was not budging. She was using her full weight to try and siege them.

Finally Deloris got her hands near his face again. He felt her claw his cheek, but he was more focused on her other arm, which was flailing all over the place. She had completely lost her mind. She was behaving like she had only one motive – a motive that seemed completely rooted in fiction. His patience for this woman, his belief in the potential of her abilities, was paling in comparison to Scully's theory. She was losing her grasp on reality. She was suffering from a serious mental deficit, and it making her behave dangerously.

Scully vanished for a second, going into the house. Deloris rooted one hand firmly in his hair, yanking on it and forcing his head down. He did his best to keep from hurting her – she was a thin lady, probably weighing no more than a hundred pounds – but she was doing her best to hurt him.

When his partner returned, he heard the door slam shut, and the familiar sound of a gun cocking behind him. His heart beat a little faster in response.

"Let him go," Scully ordered. She stepped back a little on the porch, pointing the gun squarely at the two of them, who were now entangled.

Deloris loosened her grip on his hair, glancing at the gun. Mulder had enough time to yank himself free of her and shove her away. She almost fell down the steps, but she grabbed the pillar at the last second and held herself up. She tried to go for the front door again, but Scully took a step closer, bringing the gun to the front of the conversation.

"Stay right where you are."

Mulder remained in front of the door, still cautious that she would try to get to Iden. "What the hell was that?" he demanded of the sobbing woman.

Deloris backed away again, coming to her car. She ran her hand over the hood. She was looking at Mulder like she had witnessed him choke the life out of a kitten, and she looked at Scully like she was going to start shooting any moment. The dominate force in her was fear. It was off the charts. It might have been drugs – something very powerful.

It seemed that she thought once more about approaching, but her eyes shot to the gun, and she fiddled with her car keys. She spoke quietly, so he had to strain to hear her. "I'll come back for my baby. You can't keep her. She is my child."

"You will stay away from her," Scully snapped. She walked to the edge of the steps, holding the gun level, pointing it at Deloris' forehead. If she fired, she would not miss.

Mulder placed his hand delicately on his face, retreating a little to the door as his attacker got into her car. She was staring at them as she backed out of the driveway, only turning away when she made it to the tree line. Her headlights bobbed off down the road and the sound of her little engine purring faded into the night. He could only hear his own heartbeat now.

Slowly, his lover lowered the gun. She seemed just as freaked out at he was, eyes wide, with a wild posture. She was ready to defend him again, ready to defend the little girl inside. When she looked back at him she grimaced. Her expression was concerning.

"How bad is it?" he asked.

"It's deep," Scully told him, throwing an angry glance over her shoulder. "She got you good. We're going to have to go to the hospital to get this looked at. You need a tetanus shot."

He stood patiently while she tilted his head this way and that, until the stinging was almost unbearable. He flinched away from her hands. His mind was far away from the pain, though. He focused on the echoed screams, the ones that would probably never leave his head. "Why was she so desperate to get to Iden? She was calm, conversational, and then…"

"She's lost it, Mulder," Scully said. She pulled him to the door. "Grab your coat. I'm taking you to the emergency room."

"I don't get it," he murmured.

Scully went inside. He heard her calling for Iden. He stayed where he was, gently prodding his face and gazing at the blood coating his fingers. It glistened in the moonlight. He had a hard time understanding this violent encounter. Deloris had been his friend for over a year, and even though her favorite pastime had been predicting his demise, she was a gentle spirit. Now she seemed so dark, so drained, like her time away had been more than a mental holiday. She was a completely different person. She was actually dangerous.

When the girls came out, less than a minute had passed. Scully threw his coat over his shoulders and urged him into the back seat of the jeep. Iden took the front with her, looking horrified when she saw his injuries, and Scully peeled out of their driveway.

Iden turned to look at him, all kinds of trauma in her face. "Why did she scratch you? Why did she want me so bad? Why did she want me, Fox?"

"Leave him alone," Scully said.

"But I want to know!" Iden complained.

He was starting to feel a little woozy. He slid down the seat, lying across the back, and held his hand against his chest. He could see the scene replaying in his mind, like it was happening right in front of him, and he could hear Iden's questions going on in a cycle, even though he was aware that she had fallen silent.

"Scully… Scully, I think she did something."

Squealing tires. Scully seemed panicked suddenly. She looked back at him. "Mulder? You look pale. How much blood have you lost?"

"Not much," he responded dreamily, letting his eyes slide shut. "I think she… I think she drugged me. I feel… I feel like I'm hallucinating. Auditory… auditory… auditory hallucinations."

He felt the jeep surge forward.

"Hold on. We're almost there. Keep your eyes open."

He opened his eyes, finding Iden still staring at him. She seemed so innocent, so confused by the crazy things happening around her. He wanted to comfort her, to make sure she knew that whatever was happening would not be the end of their friendship, but he couldn't find the words. He couldn't find any words.

"Fox?" she murmured, reaching out to him. She was starting to get further away.

He finally let his eyes shut, and a dream rushed up to meet him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

 **August 5, 2010.**

Mulder sat up on the couch, flipping through channels but never stopping long enough to see what was playing. He worked the remote thoughtlessly, his mind radiating around the events of the night before – the events of only a few hours ago. It was almost dawn, but the world was still as black as pitch. He had only been home for an hour, having spent the better part of the night getting the scratches in his face sewn up. He still had a headache from the local anesthetic. Scully had her head in his lap. She lost her battle with adrenaline when they got back, and he made small circles on her hip until it lulled her to sleep. Her concern for him was overwhelmed. On the opposite side, Iden was curled up with her head on the arm of the couch, her little feet balled up to his thigh. She succumbed to the crash after trauma as well.

Of all of them, he knew that he should have been the first one sleeping, but he was wide awake. He was listening to Deloris' words on a loop. His sudden exhaustion and unconsciousness could not be explained by the doctors, but they had admitted to finding a strange organic substance in his lacerations. Had she transferred some sort of infection to him through these scratches? Would those blood tests come back and reveal a hallucinogenic drug, or something much worse?

He didn't have the answers, and it bugged him. He needed some sort of explanation for her behavior, other than the obvious truth. He glanced at Iden suddenly, wondering what would possess Deloris to go after her so furiously. She must have known the police would be called. She must have known that Iden would be terrified of her behavior.

He sighed, stopping on the history channel. He spent five minutes watching a documentary about warfare in the mountains of Russia before he got up. He lifted Scully's head up and dropped it on the cushion, slipping away before she could awaken and realize he had escaped.

He went outside to his default getaway, crossing the little wooden bridge that the previous owners of his house had built over the river. He sat on the far shore, running his little flashlight over the surface of the water. It was eerie this time of night.

"Long night?"

Mulder jumped a little, cursing when he realized who his guests were. Dead for many years now, the Gunmen had a habit of harassing him in his downtime. Frohike was walking along the shore, seemingly reading something invisible spread in his hands, while Langly and Byers sat nearby, in the middle of a rousing game of cards – though Mulder could not see the cards himself, just the motions they made.

When he was in the caves, he had been convinced that these three were figments of his imagination, but events in Kentucky and Virginia had clouded that interpretation. He didn't want to believe that they were truly here, but the evidence all pointed to their status as ghosts.

His own personal ghosts.

"I came out here to be alone," Mulder told them.

"You were sending lonely vibes out," Langly said, throwing down an invisible card. When he drew another one from the nonexistent deck, he winced. "I never get the skip cards. I'm shuffling next time. I think you're stacking your hand."

Byers groaned. "Stop whining."

"Guys, seriously," Mulder said, pulling his legs up and setting his arms on his knees. He leaned down to rest his head on his forearms, but his cheek stung and he had to sit up again.

Frohike paused, glancing at him. "That hippie lady did a number on you. And by the way, you should have fought back. She was vicious."

"I think she might have been bi-polar… or schizophrenic." Mulder lightly touched his bandages, dismayed by the blood showing on his fingers. "I just can't believe she did this. Who does that? Who can just claw at another human being?"

"Crazy hippie ladies, apparently," Byers supplied.

Mulder thought about getting up, but he was tired all of the sudden. He laid back in the grass. "It was like she thought… she thought we were kidnapping Iden."

Frohike was staring at him. "You're missing a lot of symbolism from this angle, Mulder."

"Huh?"

"Just, laying down in the grass all beat up, looking at the stars, you couldn't have planned a better church flyer – or a better UFO weekly cover."

"Give me something useful," Mulder said, running his hand through his hair. He was on the edge of a headache. "Something I can work with. I have nothing."

"We were thinking about your little psychic friend while you were getting your face sewn up," Langly began, giving Byers a nasty look when another card was dropped. His voice developed an edge. "We found some weird stuff in the town records."

"Weird?" Mulder leaned up.

"Well, there was the usual stuff," Byers said, picking up where his friend had left off, "And then the kind of stuff an IRS agent would frown upon. Deloris has never held a job. She had no source of income, and yet her property taxes and expenses and what not were always marked as paid."

"Even weirder," Frohike cut in, coming to crouch beside Mulder, "Is the fact that she isn't even recorded as a member of the Winter family."

Mulder stared at him, bewildered. "That's not possible."

"Weirder, still," Frohike went on, "Is that Ms. Deloris Winter does not exist in the DMV, the social security department, or any other types of records. She's even more of a ghost than I am."

"That's impossible," Mulder stated, getting to his feet. His blood was starting to race again. His exhaustion was forgotten. "I've heard of dropping off of the grid, but you have to be _on_ the grid in the first place. She had a car. She was always with Iden."

"Ask yourself, Mulder," Langly responded in an eerie voice. "How did she get those court documents for the transfer of custody so fast? How did she do so much harm to you, despite how small she is? How did she become a completely different person in just a few months? And, most importantly, if she's not related to Iden, then who the hell is she?"

Mulder started back toward his house, his mind swimming.

"So you're accepting that we're really here?" Frohike wondered. He was pursuing him through the woods, glowing a bit brighter than the surrounding trees.

Mulder glanced at him. "No. You're a product of my subconscious. I must have figured out that she didn't fit in on my own and used you guys to supply myself with the information."

"Or you could just admit that you believe we're here."

"Now that would be crazy," Mulder shot back.

"He says, as he talks to his own imagination," Frohike grumbled.

Mulder started jogging, coming across the bridge loudly. Langly appeared on the other side, staring down at the water. "I can't believe you swim in that. Talk about parasites."

He kept running until he was at his front steps. He had to lean over his knees and pant for a while, sweat rolling down his face, before he was able to go inside. Frankie had come out, barked a few times, and then, upon realizing it was him, laid at his feet. She followed him inside, making some judgmental dog sounds when they made it to the kitchen.

He slumped into the nearest chair, still gasping, and dabbed his sweat away with a paper towel. It was beginning to irritate the scratches on his cheeks.

Frohike appeared nearby, his arms folded. "If we are part of your imagination, then why would I be warning you that Scully is waking up in the other room, and that she'll probably think you've lost your mind if she sees you like this?"

"Because I heard her," Mulder snapped.

"Mulder?"

He looked up, finding his lover standing in the doorway. She was frowning.

"What are you doing?" she asked softly, coming over to him. She looked him up and down, her frown deepening. "You're sweating profusely… did you wake up like this?"

"No, I was outside running."

"Why in God's name were you doing that?"

"It doesn't matter." He leaned back, sliding under the air vent and shutting his eyes to let the breeze cool him down. He was still a little out of breath. "We need to talk about Deloris."

"Yeah, I know," Scully said, looking a little weirded out as she took the seat opposite of his. She set her phone on the table. "Hector has been texting me. I didn't get his messages until now. They didn't find Deloris, but he looked into her. They couldn't find any records on her."

"I know."

"No, Mulder, I mean she never went to the DMV to get a driver's license, so the ID that she carries around is fake."

"I know."

She shook her head. "How could you know that?"

"I have a feeling… I had a thought. Deloris might not be who we think she is."

"Is there an evil twin theory coming up?"

He went into his office, followed closely by Scully, who leaned over his shoulder as he typed. "I think I might have seen something like this before. The scenario sounds familiar."

"What scenario?"

He spun his chair, facing her. "A young child with only one guardian, and nobody quite remembers where they came from. It meshes with the old stories about changelings."

"Changelings had to do with fairies, right?"

"Yes, but imagine it in reverse. Instead of a child being replaced by fairies, it would be the parents who were replaced."

"What purpose could that possibly serve?"

"I'm not sure." He pulled up his email, typing in an address he hadn't used in years. "I want to put out some feelers, see if anything comes back on this concept."

"Is that… John's email? You're emailing John?"

"John Doggett was the last active agent to work on the X-files. I want him to do some snooping."

"I'm sure the last thing he wants to do is get involved with the X-files again."

Mulder shrugged. "I don't see what else we can do. If Deloris is not the person we think she is, we have a responsibility to find out why she's here, and what she wants. You saw how she acted tonight. She was impossibly strong, and highly motivated to get to Iden."

"She was on drugs, Mulder."

"She clawed my face open like her hands were made of knives," he objected. "She obtained court documents, signed by a judge who could lose his job for doing it, and the judge can't quite remember how it happened."

"Well maybe while you're waiting for a response from John, we can go talk to Phil."

Both of them glanced at the clock ticking away on the wall.

"Maybe we should wait until at least seven," Mulder suggested.

She took a deep breath, pulling her hair back off of her neck. "Mulder I don't like where this is going. Iden shouldn't be stuck in the middle of this… whatever this is."

"Until we find the truth, that's exactly where she's going to be."

"We have an hour left before the courthouse opens. You should try to get some rest – on a bed, not on the couch. And I want to stop by the store on the way to get some supplies for those wounds. We don't want to add infection to our list of problems right now."

He went back into the living room, finding Iden still sleeping soundly on the couch. He slid his arms under her, lifting her easily and carrying her into her bedroom.

Her room was something of an accomplishment for him. He had spent a few days helping her turn it into what she wanted – a whimsical purple fairytale with stars glowing on the ceiling, pictures of animals covering almost all of the walls, and a map of the world right over her bed. It was also a warm, cozy little space between the kitchen and their room, the perfect cubby for a kid. As he lay her on her bed, smiling at Scully, who pulled back the covers for him, he was struck by how close they had come to losing her.

What would Deloris have done if she had gotten her hands on Iden?

He tucked the covers around her torso and departed, not letting himself linger on his own dark thoughts. She was safe now. Deloris could not hurt her here.

He crawled into bed with Scully, letting his tired eyes close.

"We can go to town hall later," Scully murmured, yawning loudly and snuggling up to his chest. Her hand was balled up against his neck. "If we can't find any record of her there, we can ask Hector to dig a little deeper."

"I think you miss the FBI," Mulder responded.

"I don't. I promise." She slid her leg over his, sighing. "But I wouldn't mind seeing John again. Last I heard, he had a baby girl. That was years ago."

"Don't get any ideas."

"Barren, remember?"

"I think we disproved that once."

"You can't disprove medical science, Mulder."

"Then what do you call it? Immaculate conception?"

"I call it… Nothing. I call it a fluke. It won't happen again."

"What did he name her?"

"Huh?"

"What did Doggett name his daughter?"

"If he emails you back, ask him."

"Scully…"

"Hmm?"

"There's no way that I'm falling asleep right now."

"Me either."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

 **August 5, 2010.**

Mulder watched the trees, daydreaming about a bottomless pit. He had barely slept, and what little rest he got was dotted with strange nightmares. He got glimpses of a deep, dark abyss that met his gaze, and groaned and heaved, like the planet was trying to spit something out. It lingered in his mind and though he found it fascinating, he had more important things to think about. His nightmares could wait.

It was almost eight. Scully was standing in Nancy's front yard, both her arms looped around Iden. She was in the middle of explaining their situation – as much of it as she could without sounding like a lunatic – and Nancy was nodding sympathetically. She was the nurturing type. Mulder tried to convince himself that Iden would be safe with her. He failed. He wanted the little girl to stay with them, because they were best equipped to handle the unknown. Nancy was a good person but she could never grasp the gravity of the situation.

Scully left their little charge and rejoined him in the car, and they both waved as Nancy led the girl inside. Iden looked uncertain. He hoped her uncertainty would help her stay vigilant. Perhaps she could protect herself if Deloris found her before they found Deloris.

"I hate leaving her," Scully remarked as she backed out of the driveway. She was worried. Her voice was thick with it. Her brow was furled. "Hector says Phil is between cases at the moment, so we should be able to catch him in his office. I want to get this over with."

Mulder was looking in her direction, but he barely registered her words. He was deep within his own thoughts. He had to prepare himself for what the judge might say. There was plenty of lore on mind control, but since it was a constant fascination for humankind, a lot of the stories simply weren't true. Sometimes myths were just myths.

"What are you thinking about?"

He blinked, clearing the fog from his eyes, and found his partner watching him. They were stopped at a red light. He hadn't even noticed them coming into town.

"Uh, mind control. It's a working theory on how she stayed off the grid, and how she got Phil to sign those custody papers. I was just coming up with a list of suspects."

She was silent, waiting.

"Of course there are a lot of beasts that are said to control human minds. Encantados are aquatic shapeshifters who kidnap their victims… the Kitsune, the nine-tailed fox… the puca… and of course vampires. But I can't figure Deloris out. She was so strong, and the way she scratched my cheek… and what does she want with Iden?"

"We'll find out, and we'll put a stop to this." Scully was always careful not to agree with his theories too early. She gave him a hesitant smile and turned into the courthouse parking lot, swinging the SUV into the first spot. She sat for a moment with her hands on the wheel, thinking, and then cut the car off. "Mulder…" She looked at him, sighed, and then yanked the keys out. "Never mind. Let's go."

Phil had the office at the end of a gilded hall. He was just about to close the door when Scully called out to him. He frowned at her. "I thought we were done, Ms. Scully."

Scully stepped into his office. "Almost."

It was a large office, with nice, leather furniture, bolted in bronze, and big bay windows giving a decent view of the quiet park on the other side of the courthouse. Mulder followed his partner to a cluster of chairs by the desk and sat down, letting her do the talking. She seemed to have it under control. He kept a close eye on the judge.

"I need you to tell me what happened the day Deloris asked you to sign those forms."

Phil readjusted his collar, sitting on the corner of his desk. "I already told you, I don't… I don't know why I signed them."

Scully set her eyes on him, a little dangerous. "I need you to do better than that. Deloris is not who she claims to be. She attacked Mulder last night – look at his face. Did she bribe you? Threaten you? Blackmail you?"

"Ms. Scully, I don't-"

Mulder cut in, afraid her line of questioning would shut him down. He phrased his question delicately, using a calm, even voice to try and ease the tension out of the room. "Did you get the feeling that signing those papers was your duty?"

Phil blinked at him, tilting his head like a curious dog. Everything seemed to stop. Scully frowned and glanced at Mulder. His mind control theory strengthened and he ran with it.

"Did she talk in a soft, hypnotic voice? Did you feel compelled in some way to complete the documents, even though you knew it was illegal? Did she make you feel as though you had no choice? Did you get the impression that signing the papers was _your_ idea?"

Phil obviously connected with those words. His voice sunk into a mumbled. "I don't know what you mean." He seemed to want to say something. His lips trembled. He looked around rapidly.

Mulder was at the edge of his seat. "Is there something you want to tell us, but you can't?"

He nodded very faintly, frowning, appearing perplexed with himself.

Scully was frowning as well. "Mulder… what are you talking about?"

"He's being compelled. Some people call it _mind control_. It's similar to the ability possessed by Modell, but it seems… different." Mulder stood up, going around the desk and putting his hands on the judge's shoulders. He stared into his eyes, sure he could see a barrage of thoughts flowing within them. "I want you to try to blink once if you find any of these statements to be true. Can you try that for me now?"

Phil blinked easily.

"He's been ordered to keep this information away from us. Deloris covered her tracks. She might have known that someone would catch on, and she wanted to make sure it never led back to her. Okay, Phil, did Deloris look at you and order you to sign those documents?"

He blinked very faintly, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead.

"Good. You're doing great, Phil. Did she tell you to do other things?"

Another blink.

His mind jumped on that idea. "Did she tell you to falsify other documents?"

Blink.

"Did those documents pertain to her housing, taxes, and citizenship?"

Blink.

"Did she ask you for anything aside from documentation?"

Blink.

Mulder felt a prickle of frustration. Blinking was all that Phil could do. He was already sweating. His eyes were flickering. Mulder could not push him much further. There was no way he could explain what Deloris had asked of him.

Still, he wracked his brain for simple questions to uncover the truth.

"Did you feel that these other things Deloris asked you for were illegal or damaging?"

Blink.

"Did you get the idea that Deloris wanted to harm someone?"

Blink.

Scully sat up a little straighter. "Iden…"

Mulder glanced at her. He was having the same thought. "Did Deloris ever mention Iden Winter?"

Blink.

"Is Deloris biologically related to Iden Winter?"

His eyes remained still.

"You were right," Scully breathed.

He hated being right in this circumstance. He could see the strain escalating in the judge, and he knew that, for Phil's sake, he had to wrap this up. It was becoming dangerous.

"Phil, just a little more, buddy." He swallowed, unsure if he even wanted a response to his next question. He had to ask it, for Iden's sake. "Did you get the idea that Deloris wasn't human, or was somehow more than human?"

Blink.

Scully drew in a breath. "Mulder… you don't think…?"

Mulder stepped away from him. "Okay. That's enough."

Phil sat rigid for several minutes, trapped in that stunned trance. Scully watched him, amazed, and patted his shoulders, trying to help him steady his breathing. Mulder used the time to check his email, finding something waiting from John Doggett in his inbox.

Scully nudged him. "Hey. Explain."

His partner already had experience with someone who could control the minds of his victims, but she still looked bewildered. It was so long ago that it must have seemed impossible now. Forgetting things like that was a habit for her.

Mulder poured a little cup of water for Phil and sat beside him on the desk. "You can find hypnotists in most circus acts these days, but most people never realize that showy hypnotism was adopted from an actual ability – Scully, you know that Modell had this ability, and that his ability was biological. His sister also had it. I think we may be encountering another person with that dangerous skillset."

"More than human?" she inquired.

"Superhuman, or alien. Modell clouded the minds of his victims, inserting his own will into their heads, but this… this seems different to me."

"Different how?"

"I'm not sure just yet. It's more a gut feeling than anything." Mulder refocused on the judge, giving his back a pat, as if that would soothe his erratic breathing. Phil seemed interested in the conversation, but he also seemed to be overheating. "Do you feel nauseous? Do you want some more water? Here, sit down. Sit down."

Phil looked up suddenly, startled, and panted. "Huh? Oh, no. I'm fine."

Scully stood at his other side, the caretaker in her coming out. She gave him more water and observed his eyes. "Do you think we might find the answers in the X-files?"

Mulder shrugged. He was sure he had seen this before. He was sure he had seen the dumfounded, distressed expression that Phil gave him. He couldn't put his finger on it.

Phil got up and cleared his throat, going to the window. It was such a sudden change in behavior that both Mulder and Scully jumped. He stood there, his breathing evening out, and gazed out at the park. Sweat ran down his forearms, soaking his suit, and dripped from his fingertips.

"You okay?" Mulder stepped in front of Scully, disturbed and suddenly weary.

The judge looked over at him, appearing surprised, and responded, "I'm fine. We should wrap this up, you two." He made a strange face, and then he glanced at Scully. "I've… hmm, sorry. I forgot what our appointment was about."

"We didn't have an appointment," Mulder told him.

"Ah, well, what did you need? Is everything going alright with little Miss Winter?"

Scully stood up, looking baffled. "Um, yes. Everything is fine with Iden."

"I think he's forgotten what we talked about," Mulder murmured to Scully. The idea alone fascinated him. It was like the last few minutes were a blank in his memory. "Phil, do you remember what we were talking about?"

"Talking? You just got here! Come on, have a seat."

"Okay, we need to go." Mulder tried to usher Scully out of the room. He had a bad, bad feeling about this.

Scully ducked around him. "That's incredible." She approached the judge and peered into his eyes, frowning, and glanced back at Mulder. "Come here and look at his eyes."

He really wanted to leave. His gut was telling him to leave this alone. But his curiosity won the battle and he went to them. Phil used to have blue eyes, but now there was a trail of red pouring into the irises, like sand moving through water. It was beautiful, and terrifying, and ominous.

"Can you see okay?" Scully hovered, looking back at Mulder a few times to make sure he was seeing the same thing. "Mulder…?"

Phil was blinking rapidly. He shrugged. "As fine as ever. What are you two doing? Is this some kind of joke?" He scooted away from them. "I have cases to get to."

Scully drew away suddenly, slamming into Mulder. "Oh, God. Do you see that?"

Mulder caught it a moment after she did. Something was swimming through his eyes. Something was navigating it like a sea serpent. It was horrifying, and fascinating.

He could barely get the words out. "What _is_ that?"

"It looks like some kind of parasite, some kind of worm, but it's new to me." Scully went to the door. "Phil, you need to go to a hospital right away. Come on, we'll drive you."

"I don't think…" Phil responded, his voice trailing off. He stared at Scully, his lips still parted as if to speak, and then everything happened at once. He started convulsing, falling onto his desk, ramming into it so hard that it slid away. Scully rushed back past Mulder, trying to turn him on his side, and he helped her keep him there.

He was foaming at the mouth, his teeth clicking together loudly, his eyes still wide open, still flowing with the red mist and the worm.

"Call 911!" Scully ordered, falling to her knees beside him. She was desperate, with wild eyes and flailing hands. Her fear pervaded the room. Mulder was already flashing through the mountains of paperwork Phil had worked on with them, the basis for their friendship.

He stood up, stumbling for his phone, but by the time he had it in his hands the man on the floor had stopped convulsing. He was utterly still, and the silence became overwhelming. Scully looked up at him, a barrage of thoughts flung from her eyes, and her efforts to save him ended. She glanced between Mulder, the dead man, and the desk, like she was replaying this scene in her mind and trying to come to terms with the sudden, unexpected event.

He swallowed hard, realizing how bad this might look for the two of them. His instincts as an investigator told him to call it in, but his casual clothes and his gun-less hip reminded him that he was only a civilian now.

"I'll get help," he breathed, unsure of what else he could say.

He flagged the security guard wandering down the hallway, forcing the proper amount of shock to come back to his face. For some reason he was calm inside, like he had seen a hundred men die in a similar fashion after uncovering that they were the victims of mind control. As he followed the guard back into the room, an eerie realization struck him. His small little town, their small little home nestled on the back of a massive mountain, was full of the same darkness that had haunted them before. It was just dressed differently now.

And at the same time, even as the fear and unease settled into his stomach, he couldn't help himself. He crouched down while the guard press two fingers ceremoniously to the dead man's neck, and watched the red dust begin to fade from his irises.

"What is that?" he wondered, looking up at his partner, who was still wearing the same expression. She turned her surprised eyes on him and he pointed it out again. "Have you ever seen anything like that?"

She shook her head. "No… It reminds me of the black oil, though."

She was right about that. Years ago they had encountered a mysterious black oil, alien in origin, that took over the mind and body of its host. It acted like an organism – a pure liquid creature with malicious intent. Part of their hunt for the truth had led them to discover their human counterparts searching desperately for a cure for the oil's effects.

The guard got to his feet, first calling for backup on the radio, and then calling 911 on his cell. He stepped back to the door, motioning for them to follow. "We should clear out of here. Is that some kind of virus? Look at his eyes!"

"Do you think it might spread?" Mulder asked his partner.

Scully shrugged, shaking her head. She withdrew to the door with them, but she seemed to want to go back to the body. "Mulder, we need to preserve that parasite in his eye."

"The _what_ in his eye?" the guard demanded.

"He has something swimming around in there," Mulder provided, making a little motion with his hand to accompany his words.

"It must have been what killed him," Scully added.

The guard reached in and pulled the doors shut, cutting off their view of the body. He got a few responses on his radio, but he was focused intently on the two of them. "Tell me what happened, exactly."

Relaying the story made it sound even stranger. The symmetry between this and his career in the FBI was not lost on him. He repeated what he'd seen to every cop who inquired, and when they were allowed to come back together, he saw that Scully had done the same. Both of their interviewers looked confounded. They carried the body out on a stretcher, fully zipped into a body bag, and Scully got permission from Hector to do the autopsy. She was one of the town's trusted doctors, after all. She would dig out that worm they had seen.

Mulder was left in the courthouse, listening to the cops chatter about the incident and going behind them to interview the other employees.

He approached the coffee girl first – he wasn't sure of her name, but when they had first moved to Wayfield she had appeared whenever someone needed a refill. She hovered around all the time, anticipating the needs of her superiors. Guessing by her age, she was an intern, probably still in high school. Her aspirations to go into the law field had landed her a place here with the finest southern lawyers and judges for at least twenty miles around.

She was steadily turning into clipboard girl. She had three of them in her arms when he cornered her in the break room. Her nametag identified her as Kyle.

"Hey, I was wondering if I could ask you something about Phil Grayson."

She tried to dodge around him, wincing when he cut her off. "I have to deliver these."

"Well, the police will probably stop you as soon as you leave this room, anyway."

She sighed, bundling up her clipboards and setting them on the table. She peeked through the blinds, withdrawing when an officer walked by them. "Is Judge Grayson really dead? I was just in there like twenty minutes ago. He was fine."

"You didn't notice anything off about him today?"

"No." She leaned against the window, her eyes on the floor. "He's a nice guy. He's the nicest guy in here. I babysit his grandson sometimes."

Small towns. Always a dense web of connections. "What about a few months ago? It would have been in May. Did he act differently then? Did he seem confused? Forgetful?"

Her eyes showed her answer. She was remembering something. She looked right up at him, frowning, and her eyebrows pulled down a pinch. "Um, yeah, actually. How did you-?"

"So he was confused?" Mulder cut in.

"Yeah. He was normal in the morning, we talked like normal, and then when I was walking past his office – past it, you know, to this room. Well, the back entrance. I was walking by and I could hear him like… whispering. It was weird."

"Was there someone in his office with him?"

"No. It totally freaked me out. He was alone, and I looked at his schedule. He didn't even have any meetings. I was gonna ask him about it but he seemed fine later so I just… I didn't." Her eyes widened. "Do you think somebody murdered him?"

Mulder let that question sink in. "Yes… I do think that."

The door opened and one of the officers – Nathan Pitcher – stepped in. He had his own clipboard. He frowned at Mulder. "I thought we told you to go on home, Mr. Mulder."

"Phil was a friend," Mulder responded, circling the officer and hanging in the doorway. He knew he was one step away from actually being thrown out of their crime scene. Officer Pitcher was not a fan of his shenanigans. "I just want to know what might have happened to him. He was healthy, and now he's dead."

"All signs are pointing to a health problem," Pitcher said. "He was overweight and well into his sixties. It was probably a heart attack."

"I think you need a refresher on human anatomy, because generally, people don't have red mist and worms in their eyes when they're having a heart attack."

"I think you should leave now, Mr. Mulder. Let us do our jobs."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

 **August 5, 2010.**

Scully appraised the body, doing her best to keep her personal feelings bottled. She had to forget that they had met the day after she and Mulder returned from the tropics. She had to forget that it was his recommendation that got them their peaceful home. She had to forget for the moment that she had threatened him the last time she had interacted with him out of fear of losing Iden, and this time, he had died right in front of her.

She put it all aside with a single breath, and made the first cut down his chest. She was being watched by the local coroner, James Barkley, who passed the job to her without objection. He was a friend of the man on the table, and reluctant to cut into him. Even as her scalpel separated the skin, James winced a little and distracted himself with the chart.

"You can work on those blood samples," Scully told him, sympathetic to his pain. He was young, and Phil had been a mentor to him in his boyhood. He was best friends with Phil's son.

James nodded gratefully, retrieving one of the blood vials from the fridge and going to the opposite side of the room. He exited to the lab, a quaint, square room with cleaner, more advanced machinery. It was the newest addition to the hospital, gained from some silly grant sweeping across the eastern states. It had been useless until now. It was a lifeline in this case.

She focused on the body, curious about everything she found. Blood still rested in his veins, and he still bled when she cut into him, but there was no blood in his heart. When she removed it to discern the cause of that, a pale pink liquid slipped out into his body cavity. She gasped, having never seen something like that before, and the heart almost slipped out of her hands. "What the hell…?" she murmured, setting it back down and getting a swab of the liquid. She put it into a canister, turning to see if James was looking up. His back was to her.

Her mystery liquid was not the only odd thing about the body. His eyes were absolutely destroyed. He had only been lying there for an hour and yet it seemed that his eyes were decomposing. The red mist she had seen in them earlier was gone.

She removed both eyeballs, dissecting them on a separate tray to search for the little worm that had been swimming through them. She only found an inordinate number of veins. His vitreous humor was thicker than usual, but devoid of parasitic life. She saved a sample anyway, hoping to find some sign of an infection under the microscope.

When she was done with the body, she had more questions than answers. Phil was otherwise healthy. She found no reason for his heart to have stopped. She found no reason for the violent convulsions she had witnessed, or the foam that lingered on his lips. From what Mulder had shown her so far, she imagined his mind had been severely impaired by the influence of Deloris, but what had it done to him biologically? Had she left behind this red liquid? What could it be made of, to invoke such a horrible reaction in a healthy adult?

Her phone rang, startling her.

"Mulder?"

"Scully!"

He sounded panicked, and it immediately caught her attention. Her life with him had been full of intense situations like this. Never had a case ceased to fill her with adrenaline. Rarely were their phone calls free of this kind of tone.

"Lock the doors! Wherever you are, lock yourself in!"

She looked up at the black double doors leading out of the morgue. They were not equipped with locks. Only the body storage vaults had locks. "What's going on? Where are you?" She could hear the sounds of the road in the background. He was driving.

"Just lock the doors, please."

She had grown to trust him in the seventeen-odd years that they'd known each other. His instincts were almost always spot on. He could _feel_ the storm coming. It was uncanny. So she followed his instructions. She dropped her gloves in the contamination bin and went up to the lab door, trying to turn the lock. It clicked, but it wouldn't open.

She banged on the glass, but James didn't seem to hear her. "Mulder, what's going on? I was in the middle of the autopsy."

"Did you find the worm?"

She had a feeling that would be his first question. She waved her hands, still trying to get the attention of her companion. "I found something much worse. His heart was filled with this red liquid, almost like his blood was being oxidized, like it was rusting. Everything seems to have shut off at the same time. I haven't gotten a chance to look at the liquid under a microscope."

"Just stay there until I get there. We're on the way now."

Her heart sunk. "You have Iden?" She didn't like the way he sounded. His panic was so sudden. Was he thinking rationally?

"Scully, they picked up Deloris, but they lost track of her. Hector thought she had been transferred to a psychiatric hospital in Richmond."

"So soon?" So his panic _was_ justified. Suddenly she had more reason to rush. She banged on the glass again, trying the knob once more. It was locked from the inside. Finally, James turned around and stared at her incredulously. She beckoned him out.

"No. That's the point. She put the whammy on him."

His mind control theory was gaining ground quickly, but at the same time, Scully had to be skeptical. She had encountered Modell and his incredible abilities, but this was something much more dangerous. If it were real, it would be a horrible revelation. There had to be some scientific reason for it. There had to be some kind of explanation.

Even though his panic had grounds now, she wanted him there with her. She wanted Iden there where she could protect her. "Bring Iden here."

"I'm almost there. Keep that door locked and stay out of sight."

James popped out, shaking his head. "It's not done yet. I just started."

"Come on, we need to get somewhere safe," she grabbed his arm, dragging him to the doors. He pulled back at first, surprised. "I'll explain in a moment. Just come with me. _Now_."

"I have to get the specimen-"

"Leave it," she growled.

She pushed through the double doors, intent on hiding in one of the storage closets until they had a bigger, more defensible group, but the hallway was not empty.

Her fears were realized very suddenly.

Deloris looked different than before. She was wearing the same clothes as the night before, but her face looked younger. Somehow, the years that had been added when she had attacked Mulder had been taken away. She almost seemed to be in her thirties again. She was also frowning, an expression made more sinister because she was looking at the ground instead of directly at them. She was thinking of something, and frowning about it, in her own little world.

Scully edged toward the nearest closet, shushing James when he tried to say something. She shoved him toward it, jumping when Deloris' head snapped up. She was staring dead at Scully.

Her mind stuttered over the desire to escape.

"W-W-What do you want?" Scully demanded, wading through a muddy river in her own head. She knew what she wanted to do, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. "James… close the door."

"But-"

"Close the door!" she snapped. When the door slammed shut, the water in her mind thickened. She was vaguely aware that her thoughts were not her own.

Deloris approached, dropping her frown in favor of a soft scowl. She walked past her, glanced into the morgue, and then drew back, addressing Scully directly. Her voice was as hypnotic as it had ever been. Her seventies hippie look no longer fit her. "Where is Iden Winter? Did you move her?"

"She's n-not here."

"I can see that," Deloris responded calmly. "I want to know where she is. Tell me."

Her mouth moved. She choked on the words.

Suddenly the woman was right in front of Scully, her hand on Scully's throat. Scully could only stare at her, captured in her icy eyes. Deloris made a soft screeching noise deep in her mouth and a fine mist sprayed onto Scully's face. She recoiled, clamping her eyes shut, but she felt like a thousand ants were crawling around on her skin.

Her voice came again, this time sweeter. "Where is Iden Winter?"

"On the way here," Scully responded, helpless.

Deloris stared at her for a little while longer, strange things drifting through her expression, and then she flung her like a doll. Scully hit the wall, blacking out for a split second. She was awake, watching, as Deloris grabbed her ankle and dragged her into the morgue.

"I like you," Deloris said, a very human edge to her otherwise mechanical voice. She released Scully at the body vaults, her hand resting on one of the handles. "I like you, and I like Fox. But I love Iden. You can't have her. You should have given her back when I asked for her."

Scully struggled to sit up, a piercing pain echoing through her skull.

Deloris looked down at her, something like pity in her eyes. "I'm sorry I met you. I'm sorry I liked you. I'm sorry I killed you."

"What?" Scully whispered, shrinking away when Deloris grabbed her arm. She was incredibly strong. She lifted her effortlessly, trying to force her into one of the vaults. Scully careened away, grabbing another box to pull herself from the woman. "Wait! Deloris, wait! You don't have to do this! You don't have to kill me!"

Deloris didn't seem to notice her efforts. She went on with her monologue. It sounded as if these words had left her mouth a hundred times before. "I'm sorry for your life. I'm sorry for my life. But it has to go on."

Scully started screaming, doing everything she could to avoid going into the box, but it was useless. Even when she heard the closet open outside, and James came rushing in like a hero, Deloris just turned to him and ordered him to stop. He obeyed, staring at her, confused. He stood and watched as Scully was shoved headfirst into the vault.

It was dark and cold inside. Scully scrambled backward, doing her best to keep the door from closing, but Deloris was too strong. It slammed shut, and the darkness took over everything. She could hear her talking to James, and then she heard him leave.

"Deloris!" she screamed, though she was unable to turn herself around. She was just yelling at the wall. "Deloris! Come back! You don't have to do this! _Deloris_!"

The other woman was moving around the room. She heard the tables sliding.

"Deloris, I can help you! Whatever you need, you don't have to kill to get it!"

The sliding tables paused. "You can't help me."

"I can try. I'll do anything. Just don't hurt Mulder! You can take me instead!"

"I don't need you."

Soon she was gone, and all of Scully's screaming got her nothing but a sore throat. Minutes passed. She listened for the sound of the door. Her phone was hard to reach, and even when she had it in her hands, she had no signal. She pulled up Mulder's contact anyway, trying over and over to get a call out to him. When she thought of Deloris harming him, it made her sick.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

 **August 5, 2010.**

Instead of going to pick up Iden, who was probably pretty tired of Nancy by now, Mulder sat in his car outside of the courthouse. He checked his email, finally opening his message from Doggett.

It chilled him, despite the heat all around him.

 _Did some snooping in the archived files. Found what you wanted. Young children with single guardians moving into small towns. Two cases survived. In 1840 Melanie and Penelope Brown moved to Westchester, New York. One day the kid dies of exhaustion – I'm not sure if that's a legitimate cause of death, but it's listed on the death certificate here – and Melanie, supposedly the aunt of the girl, disappears without a trace. I have the account of a very confused officer who states that the town remembered her, but there was no record of her residence._

 _Second case is a little more gruesome. Mary and Donovan Erikson arrived in Elk Crossing, North Carolina in 1985, and not six months later the little boy, Donovan, dies under suspicious circumstances and the mother disappears. This file has pictures. I'm not sure that you want to look at them, but they're pretty nasty. Kid had lesions on his arms and face and the medical examiner took four days to rule it a homicide. When they tried to look into the mother, she was a ghost. She had no records. She was never born, she never died. People remembered her, but according to everything the police could find, she was never even there. Donovan didn't have any family – not even one biological relative still alive – so he got buried in a public plot._

 _It gets even weirder. I got curious and looked into this MO, and I found dozens of dead kids with similar stories in the months leading up to their deaths. A lot of them were classified as accidental, but the Centers for Missing and Exploited Children make records anyway._

 _I attached full scans of the case files. If this is what you're dealing with, keep your girl under lock and key. God knows we don't need any more dead kids._

Mulder started the drive to Nancy's house as soon as he came to the last paragraph. His mind was spinning – he had read the second case that Doggett mentioned. He had been poking around on his first few days assigned to the X-files, and that was one of the cases that had intrigued him. No wonder it seemed so familiar.

Children, drifting into town with one relative, their only guardian left in the world, and then swiftly being killed, and having that guardian vanish into thin air.

But why pretend in the first place? If the goal was only to kill the children, they could accomplish it much faster if they just did the deed. Why kill their families? Why pose as a family member? Why move to a town, just to kill the victim months later?

He pulled into Nancy's yard in a bit of a panic. He was relieved to see Iden sitting by the house, a book spread across her lap. She smiled when she saw him.

"Hey, Fox, look what Nancy gave me!"

He jogged up the front steps, glancing inside. The house was empty. "Where is Nancy?"

"Brian cut his hand so she took him to get some stuff."

"Where are the other kids?"

"Dalton and Sammy are inside."

He yanked her to her feet, directing her toward the car. "Get in the car." She tried to object, but he was already up the front steps. He glanced inside, at the teenager lounging on the couch and the younger Sammy ramming trucks into each other.

"Mr. Mulder?" Dalton sat straight up, frowning. "What're you-"

"Listen," Mulder said, reaching inside and turning the lock on the door. "I want you to lock yourself in here until your mom gets back, okay? Just lock the doors and don't let anybody but your mom in. I'm taking Iden with me."

"But my mom said to watch her, I thought-"

"Just tell your mom I have her when she gets back. Do that for me."

Mulder went back to the car, ignoring whatever the kid was saying. He pulled the door shut behind him. As soon as he was on the road again, his phone started buzzing.

He stared at the caller ID, unsure.

"Hector?"

"Mulder, hey. I just wanted to update you on Deloris. We found her wandering down the highway about an hour ago, brought her in without a problem. We transferred her to the psychiatric hospital in Richmond. She should be arriving any time now."

Mulder's mind went blank. "That was fast."

"What was?"

"Don't you have to do paperwork? Get the transfer approved?"

Hector took a breath, and just like that, the conversation changed. "What did you want again?"

Mulder hung up. His insides were coiling. Deloris had been at the police station. She could have asked them anything and they would have no choice but to answer her. Did she know what happened to the judge? Did she know that Scully was doing an autopsy?

Iden was starting to look a little pale. She was frowning, holding onto her book tightly. "Fox?"

He had nothing to reassure her with. His mind was spinning. "Something bad might be happening. I need you to stay brave, and stay with me, okay?"

She nodded, her frown deepening.

He dialed out.

"Mulder?"

"Scully! Lock the doors. Wherever you are, lock yourself in."

"What's going on? Where are you?"

"Just lock the doors, please."

He heard the click of a lock, and something banging. "Mulder, what's going on? I was in the middle of the autopsy."

"Did you find the worm?"

"I found something much worse. His heart was filled with this red liquid, almost like his blood was being oxidized, like it was rusting. Everything seems to have shut off at the same time. I haven't gotten a chance to look at the liquid under a microscope."

"Just stay there until I get there. We're on the way now."

"You have Iden?"

"Scully, they picked up Deloris, but they lost track of her. Hector thought she had been transferred to a psychiatric hospital in Richmond."

"So soon?"

"No. That's the point. She put the whammy on him."

She was quiet for a few heartbeats. "Bring Iden here."

"I'm almost there. Keep that door locked and stay out of sight."

When he arrived at the hospital, everything seemed normal. He put his arm around Iden's shoulders and led her into the building, stepping into the first elevator. She leaned into his side, her eyes wide as she waited for something she didn't even understand. He had to imagine she had put the pieces together on her own. She was a smart kid. Her sister had tried to hurt her, and now she was free from jail, and they were vulnerable. Iden had to understand at least that much.

"If you see Deloris, we have to run," he said to the kid, aware that he was only elevating her fear. He crouched in front of her, holding both of her hands. "Deloris might try to hurt you. We're going to get Scully and leave, okay? We're going to get you somewhere safe."

She nodded.

The doors opened.

He stood straight, staring down an empty hallway. As far as hospitals went, this one took the trophy for being the cleanest and most well organized in this part of the state. Scully loved working there. She said the staff were friendly and genuinely helpful. She had never mentioned this part of it – where the lights only turned on when in use, and the hallway stretched out from the elevator to a set of black double doors with tiny windows. On either side there were maintenance closets or supply cabinets labeled and locked down tight.

And then there were those ominous black doors. She had always avoided the morgue, whether it was the taint of death or this long, empty hallway that drove her away. He didn't blame her.

Iden grabbed his hand immediately, trying to pull him back into the elevator. "I don't like it down here," she said. "It feels cold."

It was a little chilly, but he was sure she was talking about the atmosphere and not the temperature. It felt lifeless and empty. "Scully is back there," he pointed out, practically dragging her down the hall. He craned his neck, trying to see into the little windows. "It's okay. I'm right here."

"Wait," Iden begged, digging her feet into the tiles. When she had his attention, she hugged his waist. "Wait, _please_ don't go. We have to get out of here!"

He held off, even taking a few steps back. "Scully is back there," he repeated.

Iden had tears in her eyes. " _Please_."

He backed away, mashing the 'up' button on the elevator. His mind was centered on his partner, who was somewhere back there, where Iden was insisting they shouldn't go. He was torn.

He pulled out his phone, typing in her number as he lifted Iden into his arms. She was light, and she clung to him like a young child, her head on his shoulder.

He heard absolutely nothing. Her phone wasn't ringing. She wasn't down here.

But it was too late to go back. He sensed it, even as he turned toward the elevator. The black double doors opened slightly and Deloris stepped out, giving him the strangest, elated expression.

On her face, a face that wore many emotions, a face that he knew was not human, it was the scariest look he had ever received. It chilled him. He knew he would never forget it.

"Iden, baby," Deloris said, holding out her hand for the child. She crouched down, even though Iden was secure in his arms. "Iden, come here. Come to me. I'm sorry if I scared you earlier."

Iden pushed her face further into his shoulder. He turned a little, so she was a few inches further from the wicked woman. "She wants to stay with me," he said, keeping his tone as even as possible. He was still unsure of her motivations. He was still unsure about this whole situation. What kind of creature was she? Were all of the files sent over by John Doggett related to the same creature, or were they all simply the same _species_?

Deloris stood up again, frowning. "She's mine. Give her back to me." Her voice was very flat, very matter-of-fact. It was out of character, even for the malicious side of her.

"I can't do that," he responded.

She took a determined step toward him.

He held up his hand. "Okay, okay. Just hold on a second. _Please_. Tell me something. Tell me why you want her. Tell me what you're going to do to her."

"I need her," Deloris said simply, taking another step.

He backed up, his hand still up, as if that would keep her from attacking. "Are you going to hurt her? Is that why you want her? Do you need her to survive?"

Deloris frowned. "I need her to survive. How did you know that?"

"You know me," Mulder said, latching onto this conversation as his last life line. "You know the types of things that I study. You're one of those things." Something struck him. "Is it because she's psychic? Is that why you need her, specifically?"

Deloris tilted her head at him. "Fox… I always liked you."

And then she ran for him. He tried to make a break for the elevator, dropping Iden and shoving her toward it, but Deloris got hold of his shirt and hoisted him against the nearest wall. Iden froze right where she was, screaming his name, even as the doors opened and provided her a passage to safety. He wanted to yell at her to go, but Deloris was pressing on his throat.

It was incredible to feel the strength behind her skinny arms. She held him effortlessly, scowling into his eyes, so close he could see the red mist flowing behind her irises. She burned with a flame that he saw as beautiful. It was utterly captivating. She wasn't just some parasitic monster – she was an alien. She was something different than anything else he had laid his eyes on. Right now she was dangerous, and she was intent on taking away the little girl who had become his best friend in the last few months, but he could not help his fascination with her.

She seemed to have the same fascination for him. Her angry stare shifted into sadness. She was so close that she barely had to speak for him to hear her. "I like you," she whispered. "I like your patience. Humans are so… impatient. So unkind. You were always kind to me. You always wanted to understand." Her eyes flickered downward, thoughtful, and then she pushed a door open behind him. She set him inside the room, and he didn't dare to move. Her eyes were intent on him. "I won't hurt you. I'm sorry about Dana."

Her last words snapped him out of his trance, but the door was slamming shut already. He banged on it, his heart sinking down into his stomach. "What about her? Hey! Deloris!"

"I'm sorry," she repeated from the other side.

"I was kind to you!" he yelled, banging in-between syllables. His blood was racing. "If you hurt her, you're hurting me!"

Silence ruled the outside for a brief time. He stopped banging, believing that she had gone already, that she had taken Iden, and everything dear to him in one fell swoop, but then her voice came again. She sounded sad. She sounded regretful. "Use wormwood."

He heard Iden say something, and then the elevator doors closed.

He leaned into the door, listening for any signs of life. His mind burned with the possibilities. Had she infected Scully with the same worm that had killed Phil? How long did she have before the convulsions took over and stopped her heart? Was she still in the hospital, or lying hurt in a ditch somewhere? What would Deloris do now that she had Iden? Was his little charge being carted out of the state? Out of the _country_?

And how long did Iden have before her life ended, just like the other children?


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8.**

 **August 5, 2010.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

Scully spent the first hour trying to kick the door open. She tried to recall when the coroners switched shifts, so someone other than James could let her out, but her mind was fuzzy. She had trouble remembering what happened when Deloris arrived. She avoided thinking about it because it produced an awful nausea that burned through her stomach. Despite the haze and the pain in her back, she kept the fierce desire for freedom, the primal need to escape. She hated it in this little room. It felt like death, worse than drifting in a little boat, tethered to the dock; worse than any diagnosis she could ever receive. She could not think, could not focus. She could only struggle.

Silence dominated the second hour. She kept her phone nearby, counting down the minutes. Her mind now a bit easier to decipher. She thought about Mulder. He must have sensed that something was wrong in the morgue and hightailed it in the other direction. He was either dead or in hiding by now. She could not believe that he was gone, so she assumed the latter. He must have been far away, going to team up with John to find out how to kill Deloris. She hoped he would keep Iden safe instead of coming back here. Scully was going to be fine. Deloris had said she didn't need her. Soon the shift would change and someone would arrive to let her out.

It was around five when she heard the morgue doors open. She was stiff and tired from lying in the darkness, but she still managed a few kicks. She shouted for help.

Light poured into her little prison.

"Oh my god! Are you okay? What happened?"

Scully scrambled backward, slithering out of the box and falling to her knees. Her legs were cramped up and they refused to hold her. She sat up against the doors for a moment, her hand locked on one of the handles to keep herself upright, and then she sat back slowly, her eyes adjusting to the bright overhead lights. She had been freed by Danny, a young intern she had worked with a few times upstairs. She had never been happier to see him.

He helped her up and she stumbled back to the table, running her hands over her back to make sure nothing was out of place. Deloris had thrown her pretty hard before locking her up. She was bruised, but still in one piece.

"Call 911," she said to Danny, dialing Mulder's number on her own phone. She put her finger up for silence when the kid tried to ask her something.

She heard ringing down the hallway.

Her heart did a flip. He was in the building – or at least his phone was. Had he encountered Deloris, or had he fled when he had the chance? Had she killed him and left his body in the hallway? Had she taken Iden away to kill her, too? Scully followed the Sixth Sense ringtone through the double doors, to a supply closet. Her call was answered as she put her hand to the glass.

"Scully?"

She banged on the door. "Mulder? Open the door!"

"It's locked," he responded. He banged on the other side.

Danny came to her side, looking unsure. She snatched his keys and tried them, groaning when the lock rejected each one. "Who has the keys for these doors?" she demanded, twisting the knob, as if she might find the strength to break it open. She put the phone back to her ear. "Mulder? Is Iden with you? Where is she?"

His voice was the definition of defeated.

"Deloris took her."

She lost a beat to that. She put her hand on the glass again, wishing she could see him inside. It was blacked out. It was half of her devastating truth. Iden was gone. Deloris was going to kill her.

"W-Where did she take her?"

Mulder breathed heavily into the phone, and the doorknob jiggled. "I don't know, Scully. I'm in a closet. Just get me out of here."

She almost went for the elevator, as if she could follow Iden's scent, as if she could find them after they had had hours to disappear, but she couldn't leave Mulder. She stared at the door, grinding her teeth. "Danny, find the keys for this door right now!"

Danny took a half-step away, his eyes jumping back and forth between Scully and the morgue. "But why were you in the vault?"

"I'll explain everything, just do as I say," she snapped. "And _call 911_." She spoke into the phone again, jiggling the knob one last time. "I'm going to go look for James."

She hung up on Mulder, stepping through the double doors again. She stood for a moment looking through the windows, to the supply closet door, and then she checked all of the body vaults for the missing doctor. She went to the freezer last.

It was dark inside, the edges illuminated by an ominous blue light. Four tables were jammed into the small space, and there was a crouched figure at the back. She was relieved when James looked up at her with the eyes of a scared little boy. He seemed traumatized, but he was not injured. It was only his mind that was fractured.

She crouched beside him, putting her hand on his knee. He was shaking. "Hey, come on. She's gone now. She left. You can come outside now. Can you hear me?"

He nodded, like a stone statue coming to life.

Scully stood up again, pulling him up by his arm. She guided him slowly back into the morgue, shutting the freezer door behind them. She took him straight to a table, urging him to hop onto it. When she looked at him in the light for the first time, she saw a dark shape swim through his eyes. She recoiled, imagining the worm passing from the judge to James. It would explain why she didn't find the worm in Phil's eye. It had jumped hosts. But James had only handled the blood, and he was still wearing his PPE. How potent was this creature?

"What happened?" James asked in a whisper, his voice barely above the thrumming of Scully's veins in her ears. His voice had lost most of its depth, now coming out as a trill.

She had no explanation for him. She floundered for words for a moment, and then patted his shoulder, grabbing his forearm to try and comfort him. It was the only thing she could think to do. Phil had lived with his worm for months, but when he had started panicking, when Mulder began asking him those questions about Deloris, he had died very suddenly. She wanted James to avoid any stimulation, in case the worm responded to stress. She could take no chances with him.

"I just want you to take a few deep breaths for me," she said, obeying her own instructions with him. She glanced toward the morgue doors, wishing she were someplace else.

James scratched his head and then placed his hand on the table, grasping it so hard that she heard his elbow pop. He kept looking from her to the freezer, frowning, clearly distressed. "Why was I…? I was just separating the sample out for the…"

"It doesn't matter," Scully responded.

"It matters… there was something important…"

"Look at me," she said, trying to draw his attention. His eyes were everywhere, unfocused. He had just come out of a deep freeze, but he was already sweating. It was remarkable. "James, can you just look at me for a second? Do you feel nauseous? Talk to me."

Finally he looked at her, straight into her eyes, and she stared, captivated, as red mist started pouring over his iris. It was unreal. It was something she could never forget. It was like a series of red beads swimming through his eyes, so out of place that she could not help but get lost in it. Briefly, beyond the terror that her friend might die soon, Scully was fascinated.

"Relax for me," Scully urged, hopping from the table and taking both of his hands. She felt his pulse racing under her thumbs. He was looking around the room again. "James, hey. Focus."

It was already too late for him. He seized up suddenly, forming a plank and dropping to the ground. She fell to his side, dragging him away from the table as convulsions overtook his body. She had her hand on his wrist, trying to hold him still, and something occurred to her – he had no pulse. He was moving, breathing, blinking, and having a seizure with no pulse. He was already dead. He was already gone, but somehow he was still animated.

When the movements stopped, the room fell eerily silent.

Scully rolled him to his back and started CPR and rescue breathing, but moments into the procedure a little black worm passed through James' eye. She withdrew, watching it intently, and for a moment it seemed to be looking at her. She slid backward, shocked and enthralled by the little monster, and then it vanished again.

"Scully?"

The double doors burst open, and Mulder and Danny approached, joining her in staring at the body on the floor. Danny tried to rush down toward it, but she put her hand up, stumbling back to them. "No. He had some kind of parasite. Don't touch him. We need to call the CDC."

"I'm not sure they'll know what to do with it," Mulder commented. He seemed unharmed, but on edge, just like she was. It was a relief to see him, to be near him again, but his tone threw her off. His mind was someplace else. He had already decided what they were facing.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Deloris isn't human, Scully. She gave Phil that worm, and she gave it to this poor guy."

Scully couldn't take her eyes off of the body. It had to be some type of terrestrial parasite, previously undiscovered, but seeing it look right at her like that was unsettling. "I swear… I saw it look at me, Mulder."

He stepped a little closer to the body, staring at the eyes, still wide with terror. "It's gone now. It must retreat somewhere in the body when the host dies."

"James touched Phil's blood. I think that's how he got it."

"I don't think you get it, Scully. Deloris is handing these things out one at a time. She must have used her mojo on James, just like she did to Phil."

She felt a prickle on the back of her neck, like she should remember something, or put something together, but it faded quickly. The thought made her feel flushed. She opened her mouth to speak, unsure of what she would say, and it came out as gibberish.

Mulder looked back at her. "What?"

She felt like she was looking at him across a foggy field. "She made me…"

He took her face in his hands, using his thumbs to pull her eyelids down a bit. He stared at her for a few moments, barely breathing, and then a dark look fell over him.

"We need to get out of here."

She knew what he had seen, despite the fog in her mind. She had seen this scenario twice now, and both times it had led to a sudden, violent death. She imagined the worm not looking at her from the body of her friend, but from within, from the surface of her own eyes. She imagined the red mist pouring down, consuming her, stopping her heart.

"Calm down," Mulder said, putting his hand gently on her arm. He started leading her toward the door, giving her a sad half-smile that broke her heart.

Scully followed him, taking deep breaths as the elevator carried them to the first floor. Her stomach was writhing with anxiety, uncertainty, but she reeled it in. She focused on Mulder, on his familiar face, on the arm around her shoulder. She knew one thing for sure right now – he was not going anywhere. That fact grounded her.

"Phil lived for months," Mulder said as they stepped outside. It was the emergency bay, on a quiet day in a small town. The whole place was eerily silent.

Danny started pacing. "What are you even…? What is happening? What happened?"

"Phil lived for months with it," Mulder went on, ignoring the intern. He was focused on Scully, leaning into his words, speaking lowly and urgently. "We questioned him and he went down, but before that he was fine. If you stay calm, I think we can fix this."

She imagined the worm within her eye again and it made her shiver.

He was only encouraged by her silence. "I think Deloris told me how to get rid of it, right before she… before she left. Wormwood. It was used for stomach problems, and to kill intestinal parasites before modern medicine."

She knew of it, but the cure seemed out of reach.

"I'm going to fix this. I won't let you go." Mulder put both hands on her face again, this time for comfort. His eyes were intense, a beautiful shade of hazel in this light, barely touching on green and drifting toward blue in the center. It had been this gaze, both innocent and ancient, that had made her fall in love with him in the first place. It was such a trademark expression for him. It was such a comfort, seeing it the same as she had the first time they'd met, almost twenty years later.

He ran one hand down her face, nodding, affirming his own words. "We're going to get rid of that worm, and then we're going to find anyone else who might have been infected – and we're going to get Iden back."

She nodded with him, forcing herself to accept his plan, even if it was terribly unspecific. "Where are we going to find wormwood?"

"Um," Danny cut in, raising his hand like he was in elementary school. "I think they sell the plants at Wal-Mart."

She glanced at him, suddenly appreciating his capacity for not accusing them both of being insane. Not only was he a bright kid, but he was perceptive. He may have even seen the worm swimming through her eye. But he was as calm as ever, and even helpful.

"Danny, I have another job for you."

"You want me to get you a wormwood plant?"

"Yes. It may save my life."

He swallowed, looking around them. "Should I wait for the police, or…?"

"No, no. Just go. And hurry. If it works on me, we'll know how to contain this parasite. We can keep more people from dying."

He rushed toward the parking lot, filled with purpose. Scully went to sit on the low wall near the bushes, where she usually ate her lunch. The thought of food right now made her sick. She felt a different kind of doubt, one that had plagued their careers.

"What are we going to say to the police, Mulder? A ninety pound woman overpowered us both?"

He sat beside her. "Security cameras in the morgue hallway. For once our story has some credibility." He rubbed his throat absently, his mind flowing away from her. "She let me live because I was kind to her. She told me how to help you."

"What are you saying?"

"John Doggett emailed me back, right before I called you. He found two cases in the X-files pertaining to this particular MO. Children with a single female guardian moved into two towns, and months later the kids turned up dead, and the guardians disappeared. Neither of the kids had any living family members and when the police tried to look into their deaths, they found no record of the guardian having ever existed."

She felt a little sick. "So Iden… Deloris is going to kill her."

"Maybe she's just doing this for survival," he said wistfully. "What if her species, whatever it is, can only survive in the presence of certain gifted children? What if keeping her alive is what kills the kids?"

She shook her head, denying his line of logic. "She's killing children, Mulder."

"Because she doesn't want to die. It's self-preservation."

"It's selfish."

He frowned. "Just consider the possibility, Scully. She showed mercy toward me. She showed it toward you, too. She's obviously strong enough to kill us, but she didn't."

"I think you're missing the point," Scully said, trying to read his mystified expression. She hated how gentle his voice sounded. He had obviously had it easier than being shoved into a little box for hours. "She took Iden. She's going to kill her. She is the reason Phil and James are dead – and probably countless others. Maybe me, if Danny doesn't make it back with the plant."

He was somewhere between irritated, insistent, and sad, but all he had for her was patience. When he looked at her, she sensed the deep attachment that had always existed between them. It was a comfort too intense to describe.

"I won't let that happen."

When the police arrived, the conversation got a little strange. She was thankful again that she had befriended Hector, because he was the one running the scene. Once he had radioed the station about the abduction, he listened intently to their stories. She knew he was thinking about his own encounter with Deloris, so it was easier to believe the things they said. The whole time she was talking to him, she was thinking about how she would get him to eat wormwood, to make sure he didn't meet the same fate as James.

"I sent Danny to get a wormwood plant," Scully concluded, rubbing her hand over her forehead. She felt a little warmer than usual. "If Deloris really revealed the cure to this parasite, I need to use it as soon as possible."

Hector glanced into the morgue, grimacing. "So the worm killed both men in there?"

Mulder nodded. "We think Deloris is spreading it somehow." He glanced at her, and she was grateful that he was withholding his theories for once. "We need to use wormwood to heal Scully, and if that works, I can think of a few more people we need to get to."

Hector finished writing in his little notepad and took a deep breath. "When you get the plant, what are you going to do? How will you know if it works?"

She sensed his fear, and she had to put on her brave face. "I'm not sure."

"Scully, can I speak to you alone?" Mulder asked suddenly, grabbing her arm and directing her away from the officers. He stopped just out of earshot. "I have another idea about this worm."

She was watching Hector, wondering about the concern on his face. "What is it?"

"What if it kills its host as a defense mechanism?"

She turned to him, finding logic in those words. "Elaborate."

"What if the worms are a failsafe for Deloris? If the victim begins to recount what they were made to do, or if they become afraid or anxious, the worm kills them. Phil was telling us what Deloris made him do for her, and James was terrified, right? What if the worm ensures that no one lives to remember what she really is?"

"She did a pretty good job of that without killing people," Scully pointed out.

"Maybe it's not a choice. Maybe it's just her biology."

Scully was confounded by him. "Mulder, you're humanizing her. She killed two people – that we know of – and she kidnapped Iden. Why are you so sympathetic toward her?"

He frowned, appearing impatient. "Possums play dead. Some species can make themselves smell like carrion to avoid predation. Some parasites control the minds of ants and force them to perch at the ends of leaves so they'll be eaten by birds. Her species uses a mind-controlling parasite in the same way – it's only more shocking because the victims are human."

She was beginning to grow impatient with him, too. "Go back in that morgue and look at that body! James was my friend. He was a nice guy. He wasn't an ant, Mulder. He was a human being, and she killed him. Regardless of her biology, she knew what she was doing would kill him – she knew it would kill me! She did it anyway."

"To _save_ herself," Mulder reasoned.

"She has our child!" Scully snapped, unable to hide her disbelief. What was he thinking? Had she whacked him in the head before locking him in this room? "She is going to kill her. Whose side are you on right now?"

His face became stoic. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Are you in this to save Iden, or to make a case for why Deloris is innocent?"

He glared at her, and she thought he might say something snippy in return, but he held it back. He just went back to Hector, and she followed him. His words were rushed. "Are we free to go now?"

Hector looked between them, noticing the tension. "Um, sure. Can I talk to you for a second, Dr. Scully? I just want to clear something up."

Mulder's eyes flickered to her, and then he went inside. She folded her arms, sighing, and hoped he would lose his attitude. He had to see that he was acting crazy. He was sympathizing with the creature that had taken Iden from them – he was trying to assign reason to her insane behavior. He was trying to give a soul to a child predator, and the very idea of it sickened her. How could he not see it?

Hector watched him go as well, a protective vein in his posture. He was certainly the type to step up to a domestic dispute and try to carry her to safety.

"What was that about?" he wondered.

She shrugged. "We disagree sometimes. It's nothing."

"It didn't look like nothing."

She smiled a little, amused by his concern. "I can take care of myself. I'll have you know, Mulder and I used to spar when we worked with the FBI, and most of the time I kicked his ass."

Hector turned her smile, though he was still hesitant. "You know, if you need me, you can always call." He pressed his lips together. "Are you sure you don't want to go upstairs and check yourself in for that worm, or whatever it is?"

Her amusement dried up, and she looked away. "Yes. I think the wormwood will work."

"I won't mention you to the CDC. They would want to lock you down, you know."

"I'm grateful for that. Just… don't go near those bodies, okay? I'm still not one hundred percent sure Deloris is the one spreading the worm. It might have transferred to me through one of them." She glanced at the elevator, thinking again of Mulder. "I should go wait with him."

She started walking, but Hector grabbed her arm, stopping her for just a moment. He lowered his voice. "If that doesn't work, promise me you get some help, okay?"

She couldn't help how touched she was by his concern. He was a good man. "I will," she vowed, pulling from his hold. She glanced back at him as the automatic doors closed, sensing a little more than friendship emanating in his pale brown eyes.

She found Mulder waiting for her. He was frowning. "What was that about?"

Scully shrugged, smiling a little as she walked with him to the front door. She sat down on one of the benches, watching the parking lot for any sign of her intern's return. "I think Hector has a crush on me."

He sat beside her, his irritation turning into suspicion. "What? Why? Did he say that?"

"I just feel it," Scully responded.

He sulked, also watching the parking lot. "Warn me if I need to defend my territory."

"Well, he probably wouldn't try to convince me that murderous aliens are really good people deep down." She looked over, finding appropriate irritation on his face, and leaned into his shoulder. "I'm kidding."

"Did anything come back on the search yet?"

She sighed. Apparently he was going to keep the attitude. "Not that I heard. You're in her head – or at least you think you are – so what's her next move? Where will she go?"

"I'm not psychic, Scully."

"Come on, you have to have a theory," she prodded.

He looked away from her. "From what John sent me, this could be the same creature that killed those other kids. If it can change its form, then it's possible that the same alien has been living here for quite a while. Otherwise, there are at least three running around."

"What if we assume it's all the same one?"

"In that case, it could be going anywhere."

"Where were the other two cases located?"

He twisted his lips. "New York and North Carolina."

"So, both coastal states?"

"You can't make a correlation with only two points. It's bad science." Mulder looked over at her, his eyes lingering on hers. "She could be anywhere, Scully."

She was aware of that. She always looked to Mulder for comfort, because he was the king of optimism, but he seemed down all of the sudden. He had been so encouraging downstairs, when her life depended on her calm. Now he was allowing himself to feel the weight of what was happening. She felt it, too, and her heart went out to the sweet little girl they both loved. Would she make it home again? Would it really end like this?

"We can think of it another way," Scully offered. "Iden is a smart girl and I saw what she can do with her abilities. Maybe she'll get away on her own and find her way back here."

Before he could respond, she spotted another car pulling into the parking lot, and Danny was behind the wheel. He pulled to a quick stop on the curb and hopped out, swinging a Wal-Mart bag as he jogged over to them. He held it out, balling up the receipt.

"I couldn't find the plant, but this is the oil. It's supposed to be refined or something."

Scully took the bottle first, trying to unscrew the lid, but Mulder snatched it from her and wrenched the top off. He only stopped briefly to read the back of it, his eyes darting from left to right, and then he held it out to her. "Chug it."

She took it back, reading the warnings listed in a red box on the back label. It had quite a few of them. Mulder waited, impatient, and Danny didn't seem to know what to do with himself.

She started drinking, almost spitting it out when it first hit her tongue. It was bitter – the most bitter thing she had ever tasted – and unbelievably thick. It sat in her mouth like rotten milk. She forced herself to drink more, gagging when she swallowed, until she felt that she had enough to kill every unwanted creature in her body. It took its time rolling down her throat.

Mulder watched her, as if he expected her to start convulsing.

"Do you feel any different?" Danny asked.

"No, just disgusted," Scully responded.

Mulder took the bottle back, frowning at it. "Maybe you should drink more."

"Maybe you should shut it," Scully advised.

He frowned. "Here. Just one more sip."

"Get that bottle away from me."

She held out her hand to him, ready to shove the bottle back toward him, but something stopped her. She felt a bubble in her stomach. It was almost like gas, but it was moving in the opposite direction. She stumbled away from them, sticking her head in the nearest trashcan.

Mulder appeared behind her, pulling her hair back.

When she was out of vomit, and she no longer felt sick, she went back to the bench and slumped onto it, groaning up at the sky. She felt like her insides had been boiling, if only for a split second.

"Here, let me look," Mulder said, holding onto her face. He stared into her eyes, frowning. "What did Deloris ask you to do? What did she say to you?"

Her mind became a little fuzzy. She shrugged. "What?"

"What did Deloris ask you?" he repeated.

It came to her, just like that. "She wanted to know where Iden was."

He stared into her eyes for a while longer, searching for the worm. "I don't see anything. I'm guessing that if we went through that vomit, we would find our parasite."

She looked away from him, glaring at the bottle that was now in Danny's hands. "We need to take that to Hector."

"I can do it," Mulder responded immediately, snatching the bottle.

Scully looked again at her baffled intern. "Go inside and tell the police what happened. You did good today. I'll remember that, okay?"

By the time she loaded up in the jeep, her stomach felt fine. Everything seemed bright again. She stared at herself in the mirror, watching her eyes for any sign of the parasite, filled with cautious optimism for this moment. At least she wasn't going to die, and neither was Hector – even if he was feeling a little woozy inside.

But Iden was still missing, and she would not rest until she knew the little girl was safe again.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9.**

 **August 5, 2010.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

Mulder walked through Nancy's house, passing between her sons and entering the living room. Iden's backpack was still on the floor, only halfway unpacked. She must have been showing them her toys. He put them carefully back into the bag and pulled it over his shoulder, sighing as he left the house. He gazed out at the backyard, and at the chair he had found her in hours ago.

If Deloris was truly the regretful, self-preserving creature he had imagined, it would have pained her to infect others. If she truly loved Iden the way she said she did, it would hurt when the little girl died. How could she continue to kill, while also showing signs of morality?

He waited for Scully in the jeep, and drove them home silently. With nothing to go on, they had to rely on the statewide Amber Alert for new leads about Iden. He was also anxious to get Scully home, concerned that the worm he had seen in her eye – the worm that had scared him half to death – would have a lasting effect on her. He wanted her to be safe in their bed again.

He ended up on the front porch, listening to her move around inside. It was dark out, probably sometime around ten, but he didn't feel like sleeping. He checked his email again, frowning when he found another message from John Doggett.

 _I've been looking through the records on missing and dead kids with a similar MO as these X-files, and I wanted to let you know that they go back as far as the NCMEC does. I searched our databases and found cases dating back as far as the establishment of the FBI. I'm sure it's been going on longer than that. But none of the cases overlapped. It always happens the same way – the kid and the guardian move into town, the kid dies, the guardian vanishes, and the cops investigate, and then about six months later the same thing happens again in another town nearby._

 _If you need backup on this one, I can take a few sick days. Respond to this so I know you're not dead in a ditch somewhere._

Mulder sent him a reply thanking him for the information. He was troubled by it. All signs pointed to only one creature, operating over the years with the same methodology. It could have been decades, or centuries. She was good at what she was doing, and that didn't bode well for Iden. She was growing further and further away from him by the minute.

"I miss the old days."

He jumped a little, groaning when he realized Frohike was sitting in the rocking chair beside him. Byers and Langly were on the porch swing, looking relaxed and troubled at the same time. Every set of eyes was focused on Mulder, and he hated it.

"I'm getting tired of you guys," Mulder told them, leaning over to rest his head in his hands. He recoiled when the wounds in his face ached again.

Frohike shrugged. "I miss the old days, you know, before you were even sure that aliens existed. You were always one step away from doubting yourself."

"And now that you know for sure," Byers added, inspecting his fingernails, "The thing that you love the most – the prospect of other types of life – is what's causing you the most trouble. It's ironic, and depressing."

"I'm not in the mood for you three."

"Even if we have a lead to help you find your girl?" Frohike wondered.

Mulder stared at him. His heart beat unevenly. "What?"

"We were hanging around when Deloris took her," Frohike went on, standing up. Mulder watched, amazed, as the rocking chair continued to rock in his absence. "We saw her put the kid in an SUV, and head west."

"West…" Mulder murmured. He pictured himself driving down the westward road out of town. It was the only way to access the mountains, and to eventually cross into Kentucky. He thought of the amenities that dotted it – the rip-off gold mine for kids, the old flea market, the little motel. "She may have… she may have taken Iden to that motel."

"Exactly what we were thinking."

Mulder stood up, rushing back in to grab his car keys. He grabbed his gun, too. He was pursued by ghosts as he jogged to his car. "Why don't you just poof over and check for me?" Mulder asked, only partly sarcastic.

"It doesn't work like that," Langly informed him.

"Right. You're making that up."

He shut them out of the car and started it up, peeling out of the driveway and almost missing the road altogether. He had to center his mind, and calm himself. He was too desperate to think logically, and too wound up to make the right decision.

"Honestly," Frohike said from beside him, having invited himself into the passenger's seat. "I think we might be tethered to you, big guy. If we go too far we just snap right back."

Mulder glanced up when he passed the Whitehead house, and then again when he passed the Queen residence. "I'm not holding you here. Go wherever you want, if it means you leave me alone."

Langly leaned in from the back seat, frowning. "I'm not sure that's in the ghost handbook."

Mulder took the westward highway, putting on the speed when the road began to twist and turn. He knew exactly where the hotel was. He knew exactly what he was going to do if he found that Deloris had harmed Iden. He looked at his gun reflexively.

And then blue lights erupted in his rearview mirror.

He had no time to stop. He sped on, knowing the cop wouldn't dare try to force him to stop on these roads. It would endanger both of their lives. Instead, he would lead his own backup to the scene, and hope that he found something other than a quiet motel and an evading arrest charge.

"Looks like Officer Pitcher," Byers commented. He was leaning over the back seat. "Boy, are you screwed if this turns out to be nothing."

Mulder screeched into the parking lot, barely stopping the car before he hopped out. He looked up and down the building, dismayed by the quiet, darkened rooms. What did he expect, a nameplate on the door? He paced in front of his car, holding his hands up when the police car came in behind him. Pitcher hopped out and drew his gun, squinting.

" _Mr. Mulder_?"

"I think this is where Deloris took Iden," Mulder told him, anxious to start searching the rooms, but also a little hesitant of the handgun pointed at his chest. "We need to search these rooms, now!"

"You need to calm down," Pitcher snapped, holding his gun a little tighter. He glanced at the rooms as well, seemingly unconvinced. He grabbed the radio on his shoulder and spoke into it. "Queen, I need you at the Gold Inn down on 67. I have a situation here."

Second passed, and then Hector's voice responded. "Describe the situation."

"Fleeing suspect. I believe he is intoxicated. Requesting backup."

Mulder scowled. "Intoxicated?"

"You should see yourself," Pitcher responded.

Mulder stepped backward onto the sidewalk. He was under the walkway now. Pitcher reacted, holding his gun a little higher, and Mulder raised his hands. "Wait. I'm not armed." He spun around, pulling up his shirt to show that he had left his gun in the car. "I just want to search these rooms. If Iden isn't here, I'll leave."

"You're not searching anything. Stay right where you are."

His desire to help Iden grew stronger with each passing second. He couldn't just stand here. "If she sees those lights on, Deloris will make a run for it. She might even kill Iden."

"I said stay there, Mr. Mulder."

Mulder weighed his options, and suddenly getting thrown in jail didn't seem so bad. It paled in comparison to finding Iden dead on a motel floor. He turned and ran, going for the furthest door and kicking it open. Pitcher followed him, shouting, but he ignored it. He flipped the light on and found the room empty.

He turned to exit, his blood chilled when he found himself face-to-face with the gun. Pitcher was a little too close. He must have forgotten his training.

Mulder disarmed him, chucking the gun as far into the parking lot as he could and tripping the officer. He danced out his grasp, kicking open the second door and flipping the light on. Empty. He dodged Pitcher again, glad when he went to retrieve his gun. Mulder opened the third room, cursing when the beds were all folded and neat.

When he hit the fourth door, Pitcher was already coming back toward him. Doors were opening down the hall as curiosity grew in the patrons. He knew he was on the verge of getting shot, or getting handcuffed, but it didn't matter anymore.

In the fourth room, the furthest bed from the door had clothes lying across it. Iden had been wearing those clothes. Her shoes were in the corner, and shopping bags were strewn across the little table. He could see signs of a struggle – the television was broken, the bathroom door was cracked, and the mirror was shattered. His heart, formerly beating so fiercely to find her, now sunk down into his feet and rolled onto the floor. She was not here. He had nothing.

Before he had time to step inside, Pitcher tackled him from behind. Pitcher was a skinny guy, but he hit like a football player, knocking Mulder face-first into the grungy motel carpet. He didn't resist as his hands were forced behind his back and cuffed.

"Look!" he shouted, nodding toward the room. "Those are her clothes! She was here!"

Pitcher was already staring ahead. He spoke to his radio again. "I need all available backup to the Gold Inn on 67. We have a possible crime scene – er, possible 798."

He had his knee bearing down on Mulder's back, and he didn't bother getting up.

"I was right," Mulder grunted, struggling a little to get a full breath in. "Let me go."

"You willfully disobeyed my orders," Pitcher responded, putting more weight into his knee. He seemed to be enjoying the power a little too much. "Stop struggling, or you'll just make this worse."

Mulder kept his head up, staring into the room to try and glean something from the way it was set up, but Deloris had left scant evidence behind. He would have liked a roadmap with her next path outlined in red crayon, but it seemed that she would rather remain anonymous. Her passage from this state, and from his life, seemed to be decided.

When his backup arrived in the form of the most experienced officer of Wayfield, and also a friend of Mulder, the uppity arresting officer released him. Hector helped him to his feet, frowning at the other hotel doors Mulder had kicked open.

His eyes fell on the clothes in the room beyond them, and he frowned. "Looks like you were right."

Mulder stayed put, suddenly unwilling to go inside. He was starting to get an ominous feeling about that room. "Check the bathroom… check everything."

Hector frowned at him, going inside and peeking around the corners. He looked into the bathroom last, and drew back suddenly, squeaking a little too much for a trained officer of the law. His eyes shot back to Mulder, conveying the kind of surprise that came with a grim discovery. Mulder had seen it a lot while working with the FBI. It was the look the people who found bodies wore.

"Is it her?" Mulder asked. His mind wrapped around those words. Could nine years of a troubled life, only just now growing better, end in such a cruel way? Was that how he was fated to spend the rest of his years? Losing everything that threatened to make him whole again?

Hector shook his head, immediately dispelling his anxiety. "Looks like a cleaning lady. Foam on her mouth, like the judge."

"She must have found them," Mulder theorized, latching onto that idea. He could finally come into the room. "Deloris must have infected her to keep her from telling anyone that they had been here."

Hector was grimacing at the corpse, but his officer was staring at Mulder. "How did you know that they were here?"

 _Easy question. I have ghost friends that slip me insider information_. He lied to protect the scant remains of his reputation. "I thought she might have gone west, and this is the only roach motel on the way. If she wanted to stop, it would be here."

"You were a little more insistent than a man would be if he just had a _hunch_ ," Pitcher argued.

"What're you trying to say?" Mulder demanded.

Hector stepped between them. "I have to call this in. Can you ladies stop bickering long enough for me to do that?" He waited, satisfied by the silence.

Mulder left the scene after he had been questioned again regarding his knowledge of this place. He stayed long enough to see them toss the room, and to become a little more desperate when they found nothing else of consequence. Deloris had put Iden in a different outfit to ward off detection as they fled – to him, it could mean one of two things. Either she was going to wait a while before initiating whatever actually killed the children, or she was going to find a quiet spot to do it. He was not fond of either option, because he wanted Iden out of her hands altogether.

He wanted Iden to be at home, in her bed, asking him about aliens and ice-cream. He wanted so much more for her than to die like this – to perish to the darkness that he hated so much.

He sat in his own driveway for a while, staring at his front porch in the ugly gleam of the headlights. He had a hard time pulling his head out of this stage of mourning. It was like he had already lost her, like what happened with William was happening all over again. It was losing a friend, a companion, a shipmate. He had experience with loss, but he never quite figured out how to cope with it. He was awful at it.

Only an hour or two into his vigil, the front door opened and Scully squinted at his jeep. She was wearing her peach-colored robe, wrapped up tight despite how muggy it was outside. She had a thing about bundling up at night. She came down, barefoot, and slipped into the passenger's seat, reaching across him to turn off the headlights.

It was dark and quiet. He could see the outline of her, the scraggly bits of hair emphasized by the moon, the sharp curve of her tired cheek against the distant, black forests.

"You should come inside and lie down," she murmured after the longest bout of silence.

He sighed. Lying down seemed like such a betrayal. "I need to… do something."

"Hector called. He told me what happened." She twisted around, pulling the gun from the seat and holding it out. She popped the bullets out, turning them over in the moonlight. "Were you going to use this, if you saw her? Would you really shoot Deloris?"

"I'm not sure what I would have done. I just wanted to…"

"To do something," she concluded for him. She put the bullets back into the gun and set it on the dashboard, reaching over to take his hand. Her fingers were warm and strong. "Talk to me."

He glanced at her, wishing he could see her whole face. "What do you want me to say?"

"You can start with how you knew Deloris had been at that hotel."

"Just… instincts. I just knew."

"I can tell when you lie to me."

"Would you say I was crazy if I told you I was seeing ghosts?"

"Like the Gunmen again?"

"I think they might be real," he admitted. Even now, they were hanging around on his front porch, appearing bored. He stared at them, wishing he could explain their presence to Scully. "They told me they saw her take Iden west, so I went to the only motel on 67."

She took a deep breath, turning to look at the front porch, like she was trying to verify his delusion. "I don't think you're crazy. I just think… I think you're under a lot of stress."

He laughed. "So I'm temporarily crazy?"

"Basically."

He let the humor fade between them, glad for that break in the darkness, but it came right back to him. He cleared his throat, twisting his hand around to wrap it over hers. "What if we don't find her? What if Deloris kills her?"

"We'll find her."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I have faith in our police," she said simply, leaning over to kiss his cheek. "You need to get some rest. We've both been up for too long. We can't do anything to help her now."

Mulder followed her into the house, starting to feel the impact of being up for so long. It was like he was in the caves all over again. He dragged himself to his bed, giving Scully a short narrative of his encounter with Pitcher, and then falling into an uneasy sleep in the early hours of the morning. He could see the sun coming up through his cracked eyes just before his dreams began.

And then the phone rang. His hand shot out, as it usually did when that shrill thing went off beside his head, and he put it to his ear before he was fully capable of responding.

"Hello?"

"Fox. I need to talk to you."

He sat straight up, shaken from his dreams, now completely awake.

"Deloris?"


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10.**

 **August 6, 2010.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

"Do you have a few moments?"

Her voice was soft and even, the most human it had been since he realized that she was something else entirely. He could hear all the sounds of sleep in the background – a ceiling fan thumping, someone breathing peacefully, a television faintly advertising a vacuum cleaner. She must have been in a hotel. He had neglected to check the number before answering.

He made sure his response was just as gentle as hers. "I have all the time in the world."

Deloris shifted on the other end. He imagined she was turning over in bed. "I want to… reconsider what happened, but I've never done that before."

"What do you mean, reconsider?"

"I have been alive for a very long time – by your standards. I was thinking about why I let you live, why I wanted you to live. It… confounds me."

Mulder got out of bed, stepping into the hall, and then going to the front porch. He sat on the porch swing, hoping the screaming chains wouldn't wake Scully up. "Maybe you started to value human life in a way that you didn't before."

"But I don't… value it."

"You love Iden, don't you?"

She was quiet, and then she sighed. "I do love her."

"Iden is human. So you value human life."

"Not yours. Not anyone other than the children's. Why is that?"

"You spend time with them." Mulder recalled the cases Doggett had sent him, and his own knowledge of the patterns of this woman. "You spend months with them. It's impossible not to fall in love with a kid you spend so much time with."

"Hmm."

"I love her too, Deloris."

"Not my love."

"Think about it, and tell me if you see my logic. I spent months with her, just like you did. I may not be her father, but I love her in the same way that you do."

"Love is not logic."

He was too curious to resist. "You said you wanted to reconsider what happened, but you've never done that before, right? Tell me what you _have_ done before. How long have you been here? Where did you come from?"

"I came from… home. Far away. Long ago."

"Why did you come here?"

"I didn't. I was lost… I was dying."

"All of us are dying."

"I was dying faster than you are. I am always dying." Her voice trailed off, and then she started whispering. "I have… forgotten. It has been a very long time. I do not know why I live – for what purpose. I have never… deviated."

"Deviated from what?"

"Surviving."

"You're thinking about… not surviving?"

"If I spared her, I would die. She is unique. She saw it… she saw me die. Does that mean I am fated to, no matter what I do? Does it mean I can finally be free?"

Mulder wondered about her tone. She seemed relieved, and spacey. It was a contrast to the woman he had met a year ago, and very different from the one who had threatened him in the hospital basement. She had settled on an ancient voice. It fit her words perfectly. It gave him the impression of a creature very distant from home, without a purpose, considering giving up on the lengthy life it had been living. She also sounded sad. She was grieving, perhaps for herself, or for the little girl she had stolen. She was so afraid, so confused. Mulder empathized.

"I think our fates can be changed." He chose his words carefully, his eyes drifting to the stars to ease his mind. "Do you want to keep living?"

"I choose to."

"But do you want to? Does it make you happy? Do you have goals you want to reach?"

"No. I lost those a long time ago."

"Do you remember anything about why you're here?"

"Only that I… don't belong."

"If you changed your mind – if you let Iden live – what would happen to you?"

Deloris paused. He heard blankets shifting around in the background. Her voice came much quieter, hushed by the subject matter. "I would die, I think."

"Did you call me to ask what you should do?"

"No. I called you to ask… I want you to come here. I want you to kill me."

Mulder felt like she had punched him in the gut. "What?"

"I want you to kill me. I am in the Pine Knoll Hotel in Warner. Iden is safe. She's sleeping. I want you to come here and kill me, and take her away."

He should have moved. He should have jumped to his feet and ran to his car, hastily agreeing to her terms as he sped toward them. He knew what he should have done, but he couldn't bring himself to get up. He sat there, watching the stars, contemplating them.

He had spent most of his career trying to prove that aliens were out there, and that some of them were on Earth. He had spent so long dedicated to finding them. His only interactions with them had been short and mostly hostile, and now he was on the phone with one, and she was asking him to kill her. She was asking him to take his dreams and crunch them under his boot.

But there were other things at stake. He thought of Iden. He would do anything to get her back, including losing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn more about the universe. He would kill something more ancient than he could understand just to get her home again.

It all came down to one thought.

"Why do you want _me_ to do it?"

"Because I know you are kind. You do it not because you hate me, but because you love Iden. I want that kindness to be the last thing I know."

He swallowed and cleared his throat. "I'll be there soon."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11.**

 **August 6, 2010.**

 **Warner, Virginia.**

He shut off the car and stared at the hotel door. Scully almost got out, but she paused, staring at him incredulously. "Iden is in there." Her words hung in the air, as dead as his spirit. "Mulder? You said you could do this." She took the gun from the center console and pressed it into his hand. "She has killed dozens of people. Just think about that."

Mulder wished she would stop talking. He took the gun, turned it over in his hands, and flipped the safety off. He was burdened by the weight of what he had to do. He knew it was necessary. He knew she could not exist in this world without hurting people. But he _felt_ for her. He empathized with her. Her very existence was rooted in death, and even though she loved the children she had harmed, she always brought them to the same end. It must have been a miserable life. She was like a poison, spreading just by living, keeping herself alive with the knowledge that she was taking the lives of others. She was the ultimate parasite, but she had a mind. She had a conscience.

She must have struggled so much with this decision.

"Just do as I say when we go in, please." Mulder opened his door, walking up to the room. It felt like his shoes were full of concrete. He tightened his grip on the gun and knocked.

Within seconds, the door opened. It was Iden. Scully dropped down with a gasp, wrapping the little girl in her arms. Iden looked spooked and relieved. She shut her eyes tightly and clung to Scully's neck, whimpering. She appeared unharmed.

"Deloris said to meet her back there." Iden looked right at him, and then motioned across the street. He noticed the old factory for the first time.

Mulder nodded, his jaw locking. "Get her in the car. Wait for me."

Iden glanced down, her eyes widening. "Why do you have a gun?"

He had nothing to say. He turned and jogged through the parking lot, his eyes on the factory. He could already hear the gunshot ringing out. It haunted him.

He searched the rusted halls for half an hour before he found the woman sitting down on a balcony near the back. She was watching the forest, which spread out beyond the factory and rolled down over the hills. Her eyes were full of moonlight. She looked burdened, unlike the strange woman Mulder had first met. She took slow, soft breaths and barely looked his way.

Mulder sat beside her, watching the stars.

"I can remember hoping to find answers in the sky." Deloris shook her head, her eyes sinking to the ground. "Why am I here? What do I want? Why did I hesitate…?"

He realized she could have killed Iden already. It sent a jolt through him.

"If it makes you feel any better, I never found answers, either." Mulder kept his voice low and innocuous, not wishing to experience her superior strength again. "I know I haven't been looking as long as you have, but it's the same story. Silent stars."

"I think it might have been you."

Mulder looked over, frowning. "What?"

"I think I hesitated because of you. When she met you… she became so happy. I left her with you because she would always come back energized, and her energy would help me survive – I could put off her death because of it. But I think I loved her because she loved you. I let it seep into me. I let myself… feel things that I should not feel."

"Are you certain you'll die?"

She nodded. "I am."

Deloris was silent for a while. She stared at the stars again, seemingly captivated by them, and then she leaned a little toward him, resting her head on his shoulder. She was deep in thought, and Mulder was captivated by the workings of her mind. He could see the intelligence in her eyes.

"I saw you in a newspaper once. It was what drew me here. I thought you could give me answers, but when I met you I could see that you were also lost."

He wished her words weren't so accurate.

"We have entered an age of information." She placed one finger on his gun, which rested on the ground between them. She drew it up slowly, until it was on his knee. "I find it harder and harder to face my reflection. I hoped it would pass, but Iden… Iden is so full of compassion. She gave it to me. It makes me suffer… it makes me _suffer_."

Mulder wrapped his hand around the base of the gun, taking a hard breath.

"I can feel your hesitation. I know how hard this must be for you. I wish I had more to tell you." She pulled his wrist up, until the gun was pointed at her head. She watched him with narrowed eyes. "But I know you are merciful." Her eyes watered. "I know you will forgive me for asking you to do this. I am so grateful to have known you."

Mulder slid his finger to the trigger. His hand was shaking. He was not a killer. He was not the type to shoot someone who was not threatening him. He had strived to preserve the monsters he had encountered, finding beauty in their rarity.

"Sometimes I wonder if I should go on." Deloris nudged his finger, tempting him to pull the trigger. "If I changed my mind, you would not be able to stop me. I would kill more children."

He knew it was true. She was giving him the opportunity to stop her. She was trying to provoke him to pull the trigger. She must have felt his indecision. He couldn't bring himself to hurt her. He couldn't force himself to find the benefits of it.

And then he heard her calling.

"Deloris! Fox!"

He dropped the gun. Both of them looked up. Iden was in the factory. She sounded desperate. She must have escaped to make sure he wouldn't use his gun.

"I can feel her." Deloris stood up, her lip trembling. Tears spilled down her face. "Fox, you have a choice to make." She waited. He stared at her. She looked away, toward the door, and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry it had to come to this."

And then she was gone.

Mulder jumped up, running back through the door to try and see where she was going. She was too fast. He heard Iden calling and did his best to navigate the maze of hallways.

"Don't hurt her!" he shouted, hoping he could get through to the alien he was racing. "You don't have to do this! You don't have to do this! Please!"

"Mulder?" Scully was somewhere in the factory, too. "Where are you?"

He could see all the possibilities lining up. She could go after Iden. She could go after Scully. She could force him to take her out, because she knew how much he loved those two. She wanted him to shoot her and she knew exactly how to do it.

Iden screamed somewhere far away. He sprinted toward the sound.

" _Deloris_! Leave her alone!"

He found himself in a big open room. It was the size of a football stadium. On the far side, a door was slamming shut. Iden was squealing inside.

No. Anything but this. His thoughts were running wild. He made it to the door and threw it open, running inside before he realized what it was.

He had stepped right into her vision, the nightmare Iden had been having for weeks.

It was a bright yellow room. Deloris was holding Iden at the railing, ready to throw her over. She stared intently at Mulder. Iden screamed and tried to wiggle out of her grasp, but Deloris was too strong. She was going to drop her.

"Don't make me do this!" Mulder shouted, aiming his gun at her head. He had the perfect shot.

Deloris continued to stare at him. She held the girl out a little further.

" _Please_! I don't want to kill you!" Mulder could not ignore the screams of the child in her arms. He had no idea what was on the other side of the railing, or how far the drop was. He had no way of knowing if she was bluffing, or if she was really willing to kill her.

She shook her head, speaking quietly despite the racket. "Do you think death will be kind to me? I have taken so much from this world."

"You don't have to die! We can find another way. We have to find another way."

"I know you want the answers. So do I. If I find them, I will give them to you."

Scully was somewhere below them. "Mulder! Shoot her! Now!"

"We can find another way!" he snapped. His whole arm was trembling. It was not just the danger that Iden was in, or the prospect of killing this woman, but the things he was giving up when he pulled the trigger. "Just put her down. Just put her down and talk to me, please!"

Deloris almost seemed to obey him. She moved Iden closer to the railing, considering her, and then she moved her eyes to him, and he knew what she had decided.

She released the girl, and as she was plummeting, Deloris turned and opened her arms.

Mulder lost his breath. Everything stopped.

He heard a thud, and then Scully called up, "I caught her!"

Deloris advanced on him, still holding her arms out, her voice rising in intensity. "I will kill again. I will walk out of this building and find another child, in another place, and I will steal their power until it kills them. _Kill me_."

He backed away, running into the door. "Deloris…"

Her eyes were burning. She looked toward the balcony, pain in her eyes. "I have to… feed." She stared at him again, gasping. "Stop me!"

Mulder fired. He hit her in the forehead twice, perfectly in the center, and she stumbled back from the force of the bullets. She was staring at him, looking surprised, and then suddenly relieved. She hit the ground hard, crumpled into a pile, and blood pooled around her head.

He dropped his gun, staring at her, briefly trapped in a scene straight out of a dream. Her body dissolved into a pool of tar, spreading over the floor and overtaking the blood. Deloris rose up from it, now a faint image, barely wreathed in light, and watched him. She looked years younger. Her eyes were bright. She faded like smoke.

"Mulder? Is she…? What happened?"

He walked to the balcony, stiff-legged, and looked down at the girls. Scully was holding Iden, who stared at him, bewildered. She was unharmed. Her eyes filled with tears and she buried her face as soon as his answer came. "Yes. Deloris is… We need to leave."

Mulder used a metal bolt to slide the bullets out of the tar. He kicked them away, to get lost among the shadows of this old building, and then crouched beside the remains. He wondered if the image of her had been a manifestation of the alien itself, moving to a new host somewhere in the world, or if he had seen her spirit leave her body. He wanted to reject that idea outright, but it settled in him. It made him feel better about what had happened.

He wished it had ended differently.

"If you ever find the answers you were looking for, I would appreciate a sneak peek." He stood up, glancing around himself. "I'm sorry it had to be this way."

XxX

Mulder chose not to drive home. His hands were shaking. He held Iden instead, glad she could forgive him, but worried about her silence. She kept her eyes shut and whimpered every now and then, saying nothing about the tragedy she had witnessed. She must have been terrified, to have been thrown like that. He could only imagine what would have happened if Scully was not there to catch her. He was silent, too, lost in his thoughts, replaying the moment over and over. He wanted to find another outcome.

He kept thinking about the time that she had been alive. She must have known so much about the world, things he could only dream about. It was selfish, but it still stung to know he had missed out on it. He had killed her and destroyed that vast pool of knowledge forever.

He stayed in the car when they got home. He could not bring himself to move. It felt like something inside had shattered.

"Mulder?"

She was at his window, leaning in, frowning at him. Scully could always sense his emotions, and she adjusted her tone. She ran her hand down his shoulder. "I know you hate it, but she had to go. She was dangerous."

"I know that." He wished he could explain it to her, but the words failed him. "I just wish…"

"I know." She opened his door, embracing him, and then urging him to get out. "You see the good in people – you see the good in everything. But you have to accept the bad, too. Come inside. Iden wants you to come in."

"Do you think aliens have an afterlife?"

She blinked. "I think we talked about the afterlife months ago. I remember you saying there were a lot of possibilities. What I think doesn't matter."

"It matters to me."

"I think… if she really did love Iden, and she really regretted the things that she's done, she couldn't possibly be somewhere bad. Sometimes people lose their way."

Mulder slid out, shutting his door and jumping at the banging sound. It sounded like a gunshot. "She was lost when she got here. She found her way when she met Iden."

"She is a special little girl."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12.**

 **August 15, 2010.**

 **Wayfield, Virginia.**

It was the middle of the night, again, when he found himself sitting alone at the cemetery. He liked its silence, and the tombstones glowing in the light of his lantern gave him a strange sense of peace. He was sitting among people who had rested for centuries.

She joined him after several hours, sitting across a grave and staring at the sky.

He had learned not to be surprised when he saw people who had died. He just watched her, trying to force his eyes to settle on the glow that surrounded her. She was like a beam of sunlight, barely there, toying with his mind.

"Iden used to talk about coming out here with you."

He was glad her voice was still familiar. "She loved it."

Deloris took a deep breath, though he imagined she was well beyond needing it. "I used to view cemeteries as forbidden places. I had little remorse for the people I killed, but there was always something sacred about the places they were buried. If I put them here, why should I walk across their graves?" She ran her hand over the plants, causing them to bend a bit. "But I can see why you are drawn to it, now that I have so much of Iden in me. It is… the epitome of peace."

"Nothing can hurt them anymore." Mulder reached out for the same blades of grass, chilled when his hand got close to her. "Do you feel… is it peaceful, like you wanted?"

She nodded, and then drew her arms close to her torso. "It is. But there are no answers here. I think… soon… I can find where I came from. I wanted to see you before then. I wanted to thank you. I feel that I have come to the end of a very long journey."

Mulder tore a little flower in half and snorted to show his disdain.

She was quiet for a few minutes.

"What was the purpose of it?" Deloris took the discarded pieces of his flower and placed them together, staring at them.

"Life?" He had so many things to say about it. He stuck with a simple answer. "Life has no purpose. It came about by random chance, spontaneously, and it ends the same way. We live, and we die, and we never know what the point was. It's cruel and pointless – an exercise in futility."

"I believed that for a long time. Just to live, I had to kill things that I found precious. I thought those children were precious. But I made impossible choices and I killed them. I thought I could… I thought I could leave Iden with you and find another child, but I came back. I could not resist my nature. I wondered what kind of cruel punishment this was."

Mulder watched her, listening intently to everything she had to say. Despite his bitterness at having to kill her, he was still fascinated by her.

Deloris met his eyes, smiling a little. "I learned something from Iden, and from you. Life is not about the pain, but the mercies. I think the point is… the way that Iden looks at you, and the lengths you will go to protect her."

"You could have lived," Mulder murmured.

She shook her head. "I was not supposed to be here. I was lost."

"We could have found a place for you."

Deloris smiled again, scooting over to place her hand on his shoulder. He could barely feel it, like a gust of wind, and then she withdrew. "I wish I had been more like you, Fox."

She stood up and walked into the woods, disappearing among the trees.

Mulder sat alone for a while, until the air got chilly and he started to miss his bed. He walked back as slowly as he could, fearless in the darkened forest. He had seen many things that slithered through the night, faced them, tried to unravel their mysteries – he was too tired to wonder about them now. He needed time to escape what he had done.

Iden was standing on the wooden bridge near their home. She had his spotlight in one hand, pointing it at him, and Frankie was sitting by her feet.

"I stopped having bad dreams about the future." Iden came over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He picked her up and continued heading home. She spoke softly, as if she was afraid to disturb the sleeping forest. "But I dreamt about something else."

He did not question why she had come outside instead of waiting for him. "What was it about?"

"School."

"Was it a good dream or a bad dream?"

"Bad, I guess. The other kids thought I was weird."

"I was like that, too." He paused, sitting her on an old, fallen tree trunk. He found renewed purpose when he looked at this child. She wiped away his bitterness. "When I lost my sister, I withdrew from the other kids. I couldn't find enjoyment in the same things anymore. When you see something incredible like that – when you know about something so magical – it changes you. But you shouldn't worry."

She smiled. "Why?"

"Because you're strong, and everybody loves you." He scooped her up again. "Besides, if anybody picks on you for any reason, you just come straight to me."

"Fox…?"

"Hmm?"

"I don't think I wanna go to the psychic festival this year."

He laughed. "Me either."

 **XxX XxX XxX**

END OF EPISODE TWO: THE SIGHT.

 _Next time on the X-files…_

 **Episode 3: The Reaper** : While visiting the Scully family on Christmas, Mulder and Iden stumble upon a weathered treehouse with a mind of its own.


End file.
